Posted on 12/11/2005 11:18:40 AM PST by Brilliant
KOKOMO, Ind. (AP) -- At least a thousand people rallied in central Indiana against steep wage cuts proposed by auto parts manufacturer Delphi Corp., which has filed for bankruptcy protection.
Workers say the proposed cuts -- from $27 an hour to between $10 and $12.50 -- are unfair, especially as Delphi has given bonuses to managers and other executives. United Auto Workers officials have said a strike against Delphi appears increasingly likely.
"To the Delphi workers here and everyone else, there are 380,000 union workers in the state of Indiana who will march in this battle with you," said Indiana AFL-CIO President Ken Zeller. "You are not alone."
Workers carried signs that read, "Delphi cooks the books/Workers get BURNED."
Delphi spokesman Lindsey Williams declined comment.
One in three jobs in Kokomo is tied to manufacturing, and the Howard County community is poised to take a heavy blow as its two big employers -- Delphi and DaimlerChrysler -- eye layoffs or pay cuts.
Delphi has been operating under bankruptcy protection since October and is seeking to cut hourly workers' wages by more than 60 percent.
Based in Troy, Mich., Delphi has about 6,000 employees in Indiana, most of whom work at the company's Electronics & Safety Division headquartered in Kokomo.
The company was founded in 1999 as a spin-off from General Motors. With 185,000 workers worldwide, Delphi is the nation's largest auto supplier.
I wonder if those union-haters consider that FR is a union of conservatives as well?
Just for the record, those are not unions - they might be groups or a gathering of like minded people, but not one of those examples is a Union.
A minister doesn't negotiate with God to change the rules. And no one has to pay to be a part of a church/
FreeRepublic is not a union - Jim Robinson owns the joint and we have no ability to tell him what to do or how.
With out a way to bargain effectively that may change. I do not trust congress or business. If both thought they could I hav no daoubt we would return to the gilded age.
See the overtime law overhaul a ferw years back. I know of two people who once got OT but after that law no more. They were given comp time. One had enough comp time to take this month off. He was turned down. And it is use it or lose it at the end of the year.
I think Unions made some needed changes for safety in their early days - I just don't see them as needed now.
Can he not go to the Labor Board in his State and file a complaint?
No, he tried.
Finish the progression of consequences. When customers refuse to pay the higher prices, the company revenues go in the dumper. The company must cut costs because there are no revenues to cover the costs. If the cost cutting effort fails, company goes out of business and competitors take the customers.
That has been the opinion of many in the auto industry for the past decaded. Their quality and sales are in the dumps. You do the math.
I swear sometimes I think the worst thing for Regan conservatism is the free traitors..
"If you treat you workers fairly, pay them decently, and let them know it. You will have little if any problem from a union"
The problem ismany in business do not agree. The biggest problem my Grandfathers bosses had with his way of running the plant was when he quit. The production fell by 10% and it took 2 years to get it back up. He could tell you what every vessle and every valve was for and where it was.
Time for a reality check. Companies have ZERO loyalty to workers. Workers are the means by which productive work is accomplished. When the worker isn't adding to the bottom line, the worker isn't needed.
That applies to college grads too. I worked on a contract for 18 months. 250 hours per month. Billed at $256/hour. The company made lots of money on labor. When the customer decided to shutdown, I got a layoff notice. That's the kind of "loyalty" offered to an employee with 13 years of very high revenue streams.
I dealt with the problem by chewing up paid time off. While staying afloat on my vacation hours, I tracked down over $3 million in new business. I took that business to a more competent party in my company and reversed the layoff condition. I have more work than I have hours to accomplish it. I solved that problem by hiring competent help. That is the only justification for jobs. They are created when the business can't meet customer demand fast enough with the available labor/tools at hand. Loyalty to the employee isn't the issue. If you have new opportunities on the horizon that could not be accessed without the skills of a current employee, you hedge your bets by keeping them on the staff. I prefer to keep a reserve fund to cover fallow work periods between death marches.
Someone b-slap me if I am way off base. I heard on the radio news about a week or so ago, that Iraqi forces are in need of military equipment, specifically armoured vehicles. Than I heard these auto plants are closing. Why can't the government, the unions, of the auto makers make a deal. Make armoured vehicles and sell them to Iraq. The plants stay open, people are employed, capitolism expands, Iraq has its vehciles. I know it sounds way too simple so there must be something wrong in this thinking?
Collectivist thuggery (unions) have no respect for individual achievement. I prefer to negotiate my own compensation with my employer or customer. I know my capability exceeds most of the other people with whom I'm competing. Unions appeal to masses of people who aren't competitive as individuals. They choose to enrich themselves by threat, coercion, violence and vandalism. I personally observed all of those behaviors from CWA, IBEW and ORTT when I worked at PacBell. I was on the receiving end of vandalism to my personal car by the IBEW when they tried to force me to join and cough up the $60 initiation fee. I also had my home residence phone service cut off by an CWA steward who was angry about my resetting of options on a 212 modem. The jerk ignored requests to do it for months. It took me 10 seconds. Personally, I think he was too incompetent to do what was asked, but took great pleasure at calling his lackeys at the central office to clip my pair.
Everything's possible in our imaginations. What happens in the world of actual money and jobs is that when protective taxes are cut, the prices go down while wages and employment go up.
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