Good To See A Turn Around In Auto Negotiating

[DRSmith]

But today, as the United Auto Workers union prepares to return to the bargaining table with the Big Three after four years of painful concessions and layoffs, the union has its eye on a new kind of security -- keeping jobs on U.S shores.

We've adopted a jobs, jobs, jobs agenda," said General Holiefield, the union's chief negotiator with Chrysler Group.

Negotiators say that union members extending all the way down to rank-and-file workers on the assembly lines are worried about getting product commitments and investments from the automakers

Settles said strong product commitment does much more to protect jobs than contract provisions such as the so-called jobs bank, which used to pay laid-off workers nearly their full salary during the life of a labor contract.

"Maybe that was not the best concept," said Settles. "That concept was to stop outsourcing of work. It was never supposed to be to pay people not to do anything."

Focusing on getting the companies to make product commitments is a smarter way to protect the jobs of auto workers, said Sean McAlinden, executive vice president of research at the Center for Automotive Research.

Autoworkers at General Motors and Ford Motor are about to get large profit-sharing checks that could shape the future of the auto industry.

The management at those companies, as well as at Chrysler Group, wants the labor contracts due to be negotiated this fall to include bonuses tied to profits, vehicle quality and other performance measures, rather than straight wage increases.

http://money.cnn.com/2011/03/25/news/companies/autoworkers_job_security/index.htm

"I want to make sure we're paying our employees not for effort, but results and performance," said Mark Reuss, president of GM's North American unit, at the Detroit Auto Show here this week. "When we perform and we have good results, then every employee in this company ought to know that we're going to do good things for them on a pay basis."

http://money.cnn.com/2011/01/14/news/companies/gm_ford_profit_sharing_bonuses/index.htm?iid=EAL

Both sides can benefit from these sort of ideas

[Hubbs]

On the surface, I like this development. Sounds like it could benefit everyone.

[TheGreatBuzz]

I remember a few years ago when I was buying my truck, I wanted to buy America. You know, help out fellow Americans. But then a little research and it appeared that a higher percantage of Toyota parts and vehicles were made in America then "American" vehicles. So I got a Tacoma. Lets face it, they have a better product anyways.

[endzone_dave]

"Jobs bank, which used to pay laid-off workers nearly their full salary during the life of a labor contract."

Things like this are the reason so many of us non-union folks have disdain toward labor unions and have no sympathy for union people.

I can see why companies with unions have tried to ship jobs overseas. I can't blame them at all.

[jnhay]

"Jobs bank, which used to pay laid-off workers nearly their full salary during the life of a labor contract."

Things like this are the reason so many of us non-union folks have disdain toward labor unions and have no sympathy for union people.

I can see why companies with unions have tried to ship jobs overseas. I can't blame them at all.

The company shouldn't sign the contract if they don't want to abide by it. They negotiated these details beforehand. More often than not, it's the company that enforces rules in the contract rather than the other way around.

[DRSmith]

"Jobs bank, which used to pay laid-off workers nearly their full salary during the life of a labor contract."

Things like this are the reason so many of us non-union folks have disdain toward labor unions and have no sympathy for union people.

I can see why companies with unions have tried to ship jobs overseas. I can't blame them at all.

And if you had read the rest you would see this was done to discourage outsourcing but companies decided it was okay to outsource and pay people to not work.

If governments can subsidize farmers to not plant a crop in order to keep prices higher why would others not try to do the same sort of thing