• Carpocalypse Now

    Eleven Ways The UAW Is Like Congress

    So we're sitting here in the press room of the LA Auto Show thinking about Carpocalypse Now, the fight for loans from Congress and thinking to ourselves — you know the UAW and Congress? They're really not so different from each other. It's almost like looking in a mirror. A freaky state fair carnival mirror, but a mirror nonetheless. Here's our list of the top eleven similarities between these two seemingly disparate groups. More »
    Feature

    3:30 PM on Thu Nov 20 2008
    By Ray Wert
    4,078 views, 92 comments

    Most discussed Lars H: I don't understand the Union hate here and elsewhere. It's not limited to the UAW. We see it whenever labor more »

  • Yes, Michigan

    UAW, Obama Riding McCain On Owning Foreign Cars Like Rest Of Country

    Sen. John McCain took heat yesterday from UAW president Ron Gettelfinger for three of his thirteen vehicles being foreign-made. Now McCain's taking heat from the Obama campaign in a new attack ad so heavily protectionism-flavored, it's a good thing the ad's just running in the Great Lakes state. Yes, Michigan, a land that unlike the rest of the nation, remains a magical place where American cars still outsell foreign cars. More »
    Feature

    12:06 PM on Tue Sep 23 2008
    By Andrew Stoy
    6,827 views, 98 comments

    Most discussed bmoredlj: Good lord...this is a monumental non-issue. The problem with these ads is, you don't have to air them anywhere to see more »

  • industry news

    GM Cracking Down On Employee Health Care Abuses

    The Wall Street Journal today reports that General Motors is beginning a comprehensive health care plan audit in an effort to trim waste and fraud among hourly employees. The company spends nearly $5 billion per year on health care, a number that experts say could be cut by as much as 5% simply by removing ineligible dependents from employee plans. Like whom? Divorced spouses, girlfriends and grown children, for example. Employees have until August 20 to voluntarily remove ineligible dependents, so heads-up guys: Just 'cause they live in your trailer doesn't mean they can get their Lamasil on the General's tab. [WSJ, Sub. Req.; Photo Credit: Cleveland Free Clinic]

    10:30 AM on Wed Aug 13 2008
    By Andrew Stoy
    745 views, 16 comments

    Latest by Hello_Newman: They could make some of it back by having a network of approved doctors if they don't already. What this more »

  • industry news

    Out With The Old, In With The Cheap: 18,657 GM Employees Take Buyouts

    General Motors reported Thursday that 18,657 U.S. hourly workers — almost a quarter of its blue-collar employees — have taken buyout offers originally offered in February. By clearing out more expensive experienced workers, GM can fill the vacancies with less-expensive, lower-paid employees thanks to a deal negotiated with the UAW last fall. Because nothing will help maintain GM's new-found, hard-earned vehicle quality like paying all their experienced line workers to piss off so they can teach Burger King rejects to spot-weld for $8 an hour. More »

    11:20 AM on Fri Jun 20 2008
    By Andrew Stoy
    1,065 views, 36 comments

    Latest by NovaloadMissesPolar: And it's idiotic shareholders' unrealistic expectations--all the pressure on quarterly reports and whether or not you made target--3 month increments more »

  • industry news

    GM, UAW Agree On Comprehensive Special Attrition Program, We Wonder What Took Them So Long

    The cuts just keep on coming as the General and the UAW have just reached an agreement on a "comprehensive" special attrition program to be offered to each and every one of GM's 74,000 UAW workers. Which is funny as we thought the last one was supposed to be "comprehensive." Maybe the need for such a buyout becomes more clear when you view it in the light of the massive $38.7 billion charge for how it calculated certain tax assets this quarter. Well, whatever. What we do know is this "comprehensive" program will involve several pension and buyout incentives — all spelled out below the jump in the press release. More »

    8:30 AM on Tue Feb 12 2008
    By Ray Wert
    1,718 views, 18 comments

    Latest by Jones Foyer: @autoworker: "they pay no retirement" Of course they do. "and if you get hurt and cant work your done." That's not even a more »

  • industry news

    GM Set to Shed More Jobs in Buyouts

    Now that the parties and fun of the Detroit Auto Show are over, GM has decided to get back to business. If you haven't heard by now, GM is planning on offering buyouts to an additional 46,000 hourly workers under the terms of the newly negotiated UAW contract. When successfully implemented, this move to push out high wage members in favor of a lower wage, younger workforce will save a planned $5 billion annually by 2010. Apparently that means they've completed their turn around plan as well, so we're assuming the sales figures to be released Wednesday confirming Toyota has taken GM's global sales leader status away won't be that big a deal. [via Financial Times]

    9:15 AM on Tue Jan 22 2008
    By Ben Wojdyla
    326 views, 7 comments

    Latest by Galaxie500: I guess when the rest of the U.S. auto industry in Michigan is gone people might wise up. I have more »

  • industry news

    UAW Approves Labor Deal With Ford, Still Stuck Watching Reruns of The Office

    Ford announced today that its approximately 54,000 UAW-reprsented employees in the US have accepted the four-year national labor agreement that was tentatively approved on November 3rd. Alan Mullaly said "This agreement is proof that by working together with our UAW partners, it is possible to find solutions that collectively benefit our employees, retirees and the company... specifically the ones we haven't already bought out." This will, unfortunately, have no impact whatsoever on the Hollywood Strike. I hope you like Dancing With The Stars. Press release after the jump. More »

    1:00 PM on Wed Nov 14 2007
    By Matt Hardigree
    233 views, 6 comments

    Latest by Comrade Teargaskov: @skaz: @failurate: Nope. Better. more »

  • industry news

    GM To Give Out Perfect Attendance Award, New Car

    Proving that the medicine goes down better with a spoonful of sugar, GM announced today that a year of perfect attendance gets your average factory worker into a drawing for $15,000 towards the purchase of a new GM product. That's the sugar. The medicine is that starting January 1, those who are absent are going to need a prescription slip or test results from the doctor or else they'll face a verbal warning or, if it happens too often, a pink slip. So when daddy or mommy goes to work with appendicitis, remember that their pain is buying you that new Aveo. [Market Watch]

    5:30 PM on Mon Nov 12 2007
    By Matt Hardigree
    788 views, 35 comments

    Latest by Mark Arnold: @Al Navarro: "yeah I'll have one of those" more »

  • news

    Honda Element SC Scores First Casualty In TV Writer Strike


    These elite Hollywood liberal execs — they're so inexperienced when it comes to trying to kill striking TV writers with mid-size SUV's and crossovers. Don't they know better? Everyone out here in the UAW-populated Midwest with real strike backgrounds knows they'll probably only be able to maim with a mini-ute. If you really want to take someone down for good you'll use a full-size SUV or pick-up. Hollywood could learn a lot from auto execs wethinks — especially as we're the ones who coined "Hollywood Strike" anyway, [Defamer]

    8:00 AM on Tue Nov 6 2007
    By Ray Wert
    2,122 views, 24 comments

    Latest by dculberson: @beercheck: I don't know about you, but when I am operating a vehicle, it stops when I want it to. more »

  • industry news

    Ford And UAW Reach Tentative Agreement

    With all the excitment of a new Ford Focus (sans Sync, of course), it looks like the Ford-UAW contract negotiations have come and gone. The two organizations have announced they have reached a tentative agreement, all without even a strike deadline to speed things along. Details of the contract haven't been released yet and the agreement still must be ratified by the UAW membership. Ford press release after the jump. More »

    6:45 AM on Mon Nov 5 2007
    By tingwall
    236 views, 2 comments

    Latest by balthisar: UAW President Ron Gettelfinger used to work at Ford Kansas City. more »