The UAW Meltdown | The End Of The UAW

We are looking at the end of the UAW, they can no longer strike against the auto companies and that was their only strength.

As the UAW GM Concession talks begin, the future grows bleaker for UAW members. We now know that Ron Gettelfinger cut a deal, he agreed to never strike again to get the auto rescue loans for GM and Chrysler.

If the UAW strikes all the rescue loan must be paid back to the government. Which means any of the money that would be used for retirees and benefits (VEBA) would be at risk. The UAW is locked in for the ride.

If this was a condition set by George Bush or the Treasury, why did Ron Gettelfinger agree and didn't inform the Union members?

If the Government and auto companies are going to dictate what the wages and benefits are going to be, why does the auto worker have to pay a union?

The transplant auto companies are paying more pre hour and they have medical benefits, Why should the UAW worker make less than the southern workers and less benefits?

The Government will be in partial control of the auto companies and the UAW has no bargaining power.

Why would the new age auto worker want to be in the UAW if he or she is only making $14 an hour with no pension???

Good Luck UAW Members!
J.E.
GMCHRYSLERNEWS

Big 3 pension gap grows

Feds warn of risks in rising $41B shortfall
David Shepardson / Detroit News Washington Bureau
WASHINGTON -- The outgoing director of the U.S. Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. warned Friday that Detroit's Big Three automakers face a $41 billion pension shortfall.

While the companies continue to meet government funding requirements, the situation raises concerns for the agency, which takes over pensions when companies fail, given the financial problems facing the struggling auto industry.

"We're not trying to tell people that the pension house is on fire," Charles E.F. Millard said in an interview. "The point is that in many ways this has a similar look to other situations, such as a Bethlehem Steel."

The pension corporation assumed the pensions of 95,000 people at Bethlehem Steel in 2002, when the company filed for bankruptcy, and ended up on the hook for $3.7 billion in pension costs. That plan was underfunded by $4.2 billion.

Millard said policymakers need "a clear understanding of the magnitude of the numbers and the risks" associated with the automakers.

In total, the Big Three pensions cover nearly 1.3 million people. If all three automakers were to collapse and turn their plans over to the pension corporation, the agency estimates it would pay out $13 billion of the $41 billion, because of limits set by Congress on how much the pension corporation can cover. The agency generally has a yearly cap of $54,000 in benefits for people who are 65.

A $13 billion payout would more than double the agency's $11 billion deficit.

"It is certainly possible that none of these companies ever files for bankruptcy," Millard said. "It is certainly possible that they all do." He said the risk to the agency "is significantly greater than it was six or seven months ago."

As of Nov. 30, the pension plans for hourly and salaried workers at General Motors Corp. had a combined deficit of $20 billion and Ford Motor Co. had an $11.7 billion deficit, according to Millard; Chrysler LLC had a $9.3 billion deficit as of Jan. 1. ...More

Auto Rescue: Bush to Give Low-Interest Loans to Carmakers

The White House has decided to come to the rescue of General Motors and Chrysler by providing them with $17.4 billion in low-interest loans to keep them afloat, ABC News has learned.

The money for the loans will come from the Troubled Asset Relief Program fund, signed into law this fall to bail out the financial industry. The president will provide $13.4 billion in short-term financing in December and January and plans to make another $4 billion available in February, provided it can reach into the second half of the $700 billion TARP fund to do so.

The deal also includes as a non-binding "target" a key provisions, including making work rules and wages competitive with workers at foreign car companies in the U.S.

Chrysler CEO Bob Nardelli issued a statement saying the company was grateful for the helping hand and that, "Chrysler is committed to meeting these requirements."

Pressure had been building for President Bush to act. Chrysler temporarily shut down all of its plants earlier this week to save money, and GM delayed construction on a new plant for the same reason. And House Speaker Nancy Pelosi urged Bush on Thursday to make a decision because the nation's weakened economy could not risk a massive wave of layoffs.

"This is a difficult time for a free-market person," Bush said Thursday. "Under ordinary circumstances, failed entities, failing entities should be allowed to fail. I have concluded these are not ordinary circumstances, for a lot of reasons... We got to the point where if a major institution were to fail, there is great likelihood that there'd be a ripple effect throughout the world, and the average person would be really hurt."

Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson told a business forum in New York Thursday night it was too risky to simply let the automakers fail.

"When you look at the size of this industry and look at all those that it touches in terms of suppliers and dealers… it would seem to be an imprudent risk to take," he said....More

Is the Auto Rescue Loans In Limbo?

WASHINGTON (AP) — Conservative Republicans admonished the White House Tuesday not to use bank-bailout billions to rescue distressed U.S. automakers, and a key Democrat demanded the government get veto power over the companies' business decisions as a condition of any aid.

The Bush administration said it was still evaluating options and suggested any deal would require major concessions by all sides. Complicating its task, lawmakers in both parties — having failed in their efforts to push a $14 billion auto rescue through a bailout-weary Congress — were pressing for an array of terms and conditions they said should be part of any Plan B.

"We are not going to be rushed into it," presidential press secretary Dana Perino declared.

Only a day earlier, President George W. Bush suggested that a rescue package would come sooner rather than later. "An abrupt bankruptcy for autos could be devastating for the economy," Bush said on Monday. "This will not be a long process because of the economic fragility of the autos."

Still, conservative Republican lawmakers, many from Southern states that are home to Japanese auto plants, wrote to Bush asking him not to use one of the most readily available pots of money — the $700 billion Wall Street rescue fund — to help the U.S. carmakers.

And the White House and Treasury Department were in talks with Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn., who has been pressing for big union concessions in exchange for rescue money, on the terms and structure of a possible bailout, said a senior GOP congressional aide.

Corker came close last week to striking a deal with the United Auto Workers union for a $14 billion bill that would have forced the carmakers to bring their wages and benefits in line with those of Japanese auto companies in the U.S. by a specific date in 2009. The measure collapsed after the UAW refused to agree to wage cuts that quickly. The new contacts with the administration were disclosed on condition of anonymity because the aide was not authorized to divulge them.

Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass. weighed in as well, urging Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson to adopt the accountability provisions included in a House-passed auto bailout bill — the product of a deal with the White House — as a condition of any bridge loans to U.S. automakers. That measure would have given a Bush-appointed overseer say-so over any major business decisions by the automakers while they were taking advantage of federal aid, including the power to nix any transaction of $100 million or more.

"Given the serious mistakes that senior auto industry executives acknowledge they have made in the past, such safeguards are absolutely necessary to ensure that taxpayers are protected and that the retooling of this critical industry proceeds as quickly as possible," Frank wrote to Paulson on Tuesday.

GM and Chrysler have said they will run out of cash within weeks if they don't get help. Ford Motor Co. has said it has enough cash to survive 2009.

Perino said the administration was still working on details of the package, which could reach $15 billion for General Motors Corp. and Chrysler LLC.

She said concessions had to be made in exchange for the money.

"I don't think that there's any possible way that this president would agree to allow taxpayer financing to go toward firms that are not willing to make tough decisions to become viable and competitive in the future," she said.

Bush said Tuesday that his administration was "considering all options" for helping the automakers, arguing that the already distressed economy could slide further into recession without prompt action.

"What you don't want to do is spend a lot of taxpayers' money and then have the same old stuff happen again and again and again," Bush told CNN in an interview. At the same time, he said, "we're trying to get this done in an expeditious way."

The administration indicated it would extend a helping hand to the domestic automakers after an aid effort died in Congress late last week. The White House had wanted Congress to act.

The timing and details of Plan B — the Bush administration stepping in to help the automakers directly — remain in flux. In the absence of action, lawmakers were eagerly offering up their counsel, particularly on the idea of using the $700 billion financial industry rescue fund, known as the Troubled Asset Relief Program, to help U.S. automakers.

"Congress never voted for a federal bailout of the automobile industry, and the only way for TARP funds to be diverted to domestic automakers is with explicit congressional approval," wrote 26 GOP lawmakers, led by Rep. Jeb Hensarling of Texas.

Seven Senate Republicans led by Sen. Jim DeMint of South Carolina fired off a similar missive saying that without restructuring, "we do not believe any amount of money will succeed in saving these companies."...More

White House considers auto bailout options

WASHINGTON (AFP) — The White House said Monday it was studying options for a bailout of the US auto industry without indicating when an announcement would be made.

"We're reviewing automakers financial information, considering our policy options, and when we have something to announce, we'll announce it," said White House spokesman Tony Fratto.

He refused to "confirm or knock down or otherwise read out our contacts or deliberations, timing or substance."

The Big Three US automakers -- General Motors, Ford and Chrysler -- have warned that without a package of loans, millions of jobs could be lost, which would send ripple effects through the nation's already faltering economy.

President George W. Bush, who has hinted the government could tap a massive federal rescue package to aid the automakers, was Monday on his way back to Washington after surprise weekend visits to Iraq and Afghanistan.

His return could speed up a deal, after Bush said: "We're now in the process of working through with the stakeholders a way forward, and we're not quite ready to announce that yet.

He told reporters aboard Air Force One that "this will not be a long process because of ... the fragility of the autos."

Lawmakers have said time is running out for the auto giants, and traded blame with auto union chiefs over last week's collapse in the Senate of a short-term 14-billion dollar rescue bill.

The White House has now said it is ready to consider dipping into a 700-billion dollar Wall Street bailout agreed earlier this year to stimulate the economy and end a credit crunch.

But the Detroit Free Press newspaper reported that the size, scope and timing of any lifeline to the automakers was uncertain.

The White House was interested in two conditions, the paper said. The first was a steep reduction by creditors in automakers' debt, the second was requiring the United Auto Workers (UAW) union to take half the money due for a retiree health-care trust fund in stock, instead of in bonds or cash.

The Wall Street Journal reported Monday that the US government was planning a package of between 10 and 40 billion dollars.

According to the size of the deal, the administration may have to seek congressional approval, with the new Congress not set to meet again until January 6 with a boosted Democratic majority following the November 4 elections.

Republican Senator Bob Corker, who was the Senate's pointman for a series of adjustments to the House of Representatives' bailout bill, said the UAW must make pay adjustments.

"Every car they make, they're at a competitive disadvantage because they are disadvantaged by their labor costs," Corker said Sunday.

In turn, auto representatives accused Republicans of seeking to impose unfair wage cuts.

"We need this money ... this low-interest bridge loan to get us through an emergency situation here, an economic downturn," UAW chief Ron Gettelfinger told CNN, accusing Republicans of politicizing the issue by calling for US manufacturers to bring their pay in line with foreign automakers.

U.S. Rescue May Give Government Stakes in GM, Ford and Chrysler

Dec. 9 (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. government may end up holding stakes in General Motors Corp., Ford Motor Co. and Chrysler LLC if Congress and the White House reach agreement on a financial bailout for the automakers.

Under the proposed rescue, details of which are still being discussed, the Treasury would get warrants for stock equivalent to 20 percent of any government loans. With GM seeking as much as $10 billion and valued at $3 billion, the state may become the biggest shareholder. The legislation isn’t clear on what kind of holding the government would take, leaving it the option of preferred, common, voting or non-voting shares.

Democrats in Congress drafted the plan to aid automakers with $15 billion in loans. The legislation, which allows the president to appoint a so-called auto czar, needs 60 votes to overcome a Republican threat in the Senate to stall the measure in endless debate using a parliamentary maneuver called a filibuster. Some Senate Republicans yesterday expressed doubts about the plan, to be voted on in a special session this week.

“I remain concerned about committing federal dollars for the Big Three without any clear strategy that the money will be put to good use and repaid,” said Senator Judd Gregg of New Hampshire, the top Republican on the Budget Committee....More

U.S. Rescue May Give Government Stakes in GM, Ford and Chrysler

Dec. 9 (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. government may end up holding stakes in General Motors Corp., Ford Motor Co. and Chrysler LLC if Congress and the White House reach agreement on a financial bailout for the automakers.

Under the proposed rescue, details of which are still being discussed, the Treasury would get warrants for stock equivalent to 20 percent of any government loans. With GM seeking as much as $10 billion and valued at $3 billion, the state may become the biggest shareholder. The legislation isn’t clear on what kind of holding the government would take, leaving it the option of preferred, common, voting or non-voting shares.

Democrats in Congress drafted the plan to aid automakers with $15 billion in loans. The legislation, which allows the president to appoint a so-called auto czar, needs 60 votes to overcome a Republican threat in the Senate to stall the measure in endless debate using a parliamentary maneuver called a filibuster. Some Senate Republicans yesterday expressed doubts about the plan, to be voted on in a special session this week.

“I remain concerned about committing federal dollars for the Big Three without any clear strategy that the money will be put to good use and repaid,” said Senator Judd Gregg of New Hampshire, the top Republican on the Budget Committee....More

U.S. Rescue May Give Government Stakes in GM, Ford and Chrysler

Dec. 9 (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. government may end up holding stakes in General Motors Corp., Ford Motor Co. and Chrysler LLC if Congress and the White House reach agreement on a financial bailout for the automakers.

Under the proposed rescue, details of which are still being discussed, the Treasury would get warrants for stock equivalent to 20 percent of any government loans. With GM seeking as much as $10 billion and valued at $3 billion, the state may become the biggest shareholder. The legislation isn’t clear on what kind of holding the government would take, leaving it the option of preferred, common, voting or non-voting shares.

Democrats in Congress drafted the plan to aid automakers with $15 billion in loans. The legislation, which allows the president to appoint a so-called auto czar, needs 60 votes to overcome a Republican threat in the Senate to stall the measure in endless debate using a parliamentary maneuver called a filibuster. Some Senate Republicans yesterday expressed doubts about the plan, to be voted on in a special session this week.

“I remain concerned about committing federal dollars for the Big Three without any clear strategy that the money will be put to good use and repaid,” said Senator Judd Gregg of New Hampshire, the top Republican on the Budget Committee....More

Bush acknowledges recession, automakers may not survive!

WASHINGTON – President George W. Bush publicly acknowledged for the first time Friday that the U.S. economy is in a recession and worried aloud that Detroit's Big Three automakers may not all survive their mounting troubles.


Four days after the long-suspected existence of a recession was made official, Bush used the word himself.

"Our economy is in a recession," Bush said flatly, speaking to reporters on the South Lawn only hours after the release of a government report showing the biggest month of job losses in 34 years. "This is in large part because of severe problems in our housing, credit and financial markets, which have resulted in significant job losses."

While repeatedly listing the serious problems in the economy, the White House has refused to embrace the actual term until Monday, when a panel for the National Bureau of Economic Research said the recession began last December and is ongoing.

With automakers, particularly General Motors, in fear of bankruptcy, they are seeking from Washington a huge cash infusion of up to $34 billion, beyond an existing $25 billion loan program. Lawmakers are considering the idea, but there is uncertainty about the level of support on Capitol Hill for that plan.

Bush displayed skepticism about the wisdom of new aid to companies that still need to make "hard choices on all aspects of their business." So while urging lawmakers to act next week to help the battered industry, Bush urged a Congress controlled by opposition Democrats to follow his approach...more

Bush acknowledges recession, automakers may not survive!

WASHINGTON – President George W. Bush publicly acknowledged for the first time Friday that the U.S. economy is in a recession and worried aloud that Detroit's Big Three automakers may not all survive their mounting troubles.


Four days after the long-suspected existence of a recession was made official, Bush used the word himself.

"Our economy is in a recession," Bush said flatly, speaking to reporters on the South Lawn only hours after the release of a government report showing the biggest month of job losses in 34 years. "This is in large part because of severe problems in our housing, credit and financial markets, which have resulted in significant job losses."

While repeatedly listing the serious problems in the economy, the White House has refused to embrace the actual term until Monday, when a panel for the National Bureau of Economic Research said the recession began last December and is ongoing.

With automakers, particularly General Motors, in fear of bankruptcy, they are seeking from Washington a huge cash infusion of up to $34 billion, beyond an existing $25 billion loan program. Lawmakers are considering the idea, but there is uncertainty about the level of support on Capitol Hill for that plan.

Bush displayed skepticism about the wisdom of new aid to companies that still need to make "hard choices on all aspects of their business." So while urging lawmakers to act next week to help the battered industry, Bush urged a Congress controlled by opposition Democrats to follow his approach...more

Bush acknowledges recession, automakers may not survive!

WASHINGTON – President George W. Bush publicly acknowledged for the first time Friday that the U.S. economy is in a recession and worried aloud that Detroit's Big Three automakers may not all survive their mounting troubles.


Four days after the long-suspected existence of a recession was made official, Bush used the word himself.

"Our economy is in a recession," Bush said flatly, speaking to reporters on the South Lawn only hours after the release of a government report showing the biggest month of job losses in 34 years. "This is in large part because of severe problems in our housing, credit and financial markets, which have resulted in significant job losses."

While repeatedly listing the serious problems in the economy, the White House has refused to embrace the actual term until Monday, when a panel for the National Bureau of Economic Research said the recession began last December and is ongoing.

With automakers, particularly General Motors, in fear of bankruptcy, they are seeking from Washington a huge cash infusion of up to $34 billion, beyond an existing $25 billion loan program. Lawmakers are considering the idea, but there is uncertainty about the level of support on Capitol Hill for that plan.

Bush displayed skepticism about the wisdom of new aid to companies that still need to make "hard choices on all aspects of their business." So while urging lawmakers to act next week to help the battered industry, Bush urged a Congress controlled by opposition Democrats to follow his approach...more

Ford tells Congress it may be able to go it alone

WASHINGTON – Ford Motor Co. is asking Congress for a $9 billion "stand-by line of credit" to stabilize its business, but says it doesn't expect to tap it.

Unless one of Detroit's other Big Three auto companies goes bust, Ford expects to have enough money to make it through next year, it said in a plan that projected the firm will break even or turn a pretax profit in 2011.

Detroit's automakers, making a second bid for $25 billion in funding, are presenting Congress with plans Tuesday to restructure their ailing companies and provide assurances that the funding will help them survive and thrive.

General Motors Corp., Ford and Chrysler LLC said they would refinance their companies' debt, cut executive pay, seek concessions from workers and find other ways of reviving their staggering companies.

The Big Three executives also are offering a series of mostly symbolic moves to burnish their images, badly tattered after they arrived in Washington D.C. last month on three separate private jets to plead for a federal lifeline for their struggling companies.

Ford CEO Alan Mulally said he'd work for $1 per year if his firm had to take any government loan money. The company's plan also says it will cancel all management employees' 2009 bonuses, scrap merit increases for its North American salaried employees next year, and sell its five corporate aircraft.

And for this week's round of congressional hearings on the auto bailout, all three company chiefs will skip the lavish travel arrangements. Mulally is coming by car from Detroit for this week's second round of congressional hearings on government help for the Big Three. GM Chief Rick Wagoner will drive a Chevrolet Malibu hybrid sedan for the 520-mile trek from Detroit to Capitol Hill, spokesman Tony Cervone said Tuesday. And Chrysler LLC CEO Robert Nardelli won't travel by corporate jet, but a spokeswoman declined to elaborate on his travel plans, citing security reasons.

The unions were preparing to make sacrifices as well. UAW leaders summoned local union leaders from across the country to an emergency meeting Wednesday in Detroit to discuss concessions the union could make to help auto companies get government loans.

U.S. automakers are struggling to stay afloat heading into 2009 under the weight of an economic meltdown, the worst auto sales in decades and a tight credit market. General Motors, Ford and Chrysler went through nearly $18 billion in cash reserves during the last quarter, and GM and Chrysler have said they could collapse in weeks.

Top executives from the Big Three failed last month to convince a skeptical Congress that they were worthy of $25 billion in loans. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., ordered them to outline major changes, including the elimination of lavish executive pay packages and assurances that taxpayers would be reimbursed for the loans.

All three companies are filing separate plans. Congressional hearings are planned for Thursday and Friday.

"I believe the industry will make a compelling case for bridge loans that will allow the companies to return to firm financial footing," said Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich.

GM will outline efforts to negotiate swapping some of the company's debt for equity stakes in the automaker, either shares or warrants for them, said two people briefed on the company's plan.

With eight separate brands, GM will also discuss efforts to shed brands but it would prefer to sell them instead of shutting down Pontiac, Saturn or Saab, said one of the people briefed on the plan. Killing off brands, like GM did with Oldsmobile in 2004, would require cash the company doesn't have, the person said. The people briefed on GM's preparations didn't want to be identified because the plan hadn't been completed.

Some members of Congress have urged the Big Three executives to take major pay cuts as part of the deal. Chrysler's Nardelli said he would work for $1 a year, and a similar commitment is expected from GM's Wagoner.

Chrysler is expected to outline changes that would include a swap of debt in the company for equity stakes and reductions in some vehicle models, according to a person who was briefed on the plan. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the discussions were private.

Cash stockpiles at GM and Chrysler are dangerously close to the minimum amount required to run the companies, meaning they could have trouble paying all their bills by the end of the year.

GM, according to its quarterly report filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, owes creditors $45 billion and it must pay more than $7.5 billion early in 2010 to a United Auto Workers trust fund that will take over retiree health care payments.

Ford owes more than $26 billion, with $6.3 billion due to its UAW trust fund at the end of 2009. Chrysler, a private company, does not have to open its books, but its CEO, Nardelli, has said it would be difficult for the company to make it without federal aid. All three likely are negotiating with the UAW for delays in payments to the trusts.

The companies are expected to seek other concessions from the United Auto Workers, including the elimination of the much-maligned jobs bank in which laid-off workers keep receiving most of their pay.

Alan Reuther, the UAW's legislative director, declined to say on Monday what kinds of concessions the union might take but said "we realize that all stakeholders need to come to the table to do what's necessary to ensure the viability of the companies. We're prepared to do our part."

The UAW leaders subsequently disclosed plans for the Wednesday meeting, where they will discuss the possibility of restructuring a multibillion-dollar union-administered health care fund so that the automakers can delay payments, according to a person familiar with the matter.

They also plan to discuss eliminating the jobs bank.

The companies are resisting calls for bankruptcy. The executives said last month that bankruptcy cannot be an option because no one would buy a car from an automaker that may not survive the life of the vehicle

The Engine Of Democracy-Auto Facts

The Engine Of Democracy Will Be Up Dec. 1st-The Engine Of Democracy
Visitors also will be able to see the impact of Detroit's automakers on their state as well as key facts and myth-busters concerning Detroit's automakers such as:


-- The automakers are requesting a bridge loan, not a bailout as Wall
Street has done. The companies need the loan because the U.S. credit
freeze has essentially closed capital markets and squeezed their cash
flow from operations that are being devastated by extremely low consumer
demand across the industry. This freeze is happening as the automakers
are in the midst of huge restructuring costs, heavy pension and health
care payments and massive-yet-crucial product and advanced technology
investments so that today's and tomorrow's vehicles are even safer and
more environmentally friendly.

-- GM, Ford and Chrysler make vehicles Americans want to buy. 50 percent of
the products sold in this country come from those companies. The
best-selling vehicle in the U.S. is a Ford; No. 2 is a GM product.

-- Motor vehicles and parts are the single largest export from the U.S.,
topping aerospace, medical equipment and communications.

-- According to J.D. Power, three of the top five brands for dependability
are American made: Buick, Cadillac and Mercury. The 2008 Chevy Malibu
is the highest ranked midsize car in initial quality. The 2008 Chevy
Silverado ranks highest in large truck quality. Ford quality is on par
with Toyota and Honda.

-- Ford has the most five-star safety rated vehicles in the industry and GM
has the same number of vehicles as Toyota that achieved the top safety
rating, according to the Institute for Highway Safety.

-- GM, Ford and Chrysler build fuel-efficient vehicles. GM has twice as
many models thatget 30 mpg or better than its nearest competitor. GM's
four new midsize crossover vehicles have best-in-class fuel economy. GM
has eight hybrids on the road today, with a total of 20 planned by 2012.
The 2-Mode Chevy Tahoe full-size SUV was named Green Car of the Year
last November. The new Ford Fusion Hybrid and Mercury Milan Hybrid beat
the Toyota Camry Hybrid by 6 miles per gallon. In minivans, Chrysler is
better than both Nissan and Toyota and basically tied with Honda.

-- GM, Ford and Chrysler have been restructuring their businesses over the
past few years that included the loss of tens of thousands of jobs, a
new labor contract with the UAW that will bring costs in line with
foreign competitors in this country, and productivity gains that have
put them on par with the competition. Ford was profitable in the first
quarter of 2008 before the economic crisis began and has been working
for two years to improve its balance sheet through aggressive
restructuring while accelerating the development of new, safe,
fuel-efficient and high quality products. GM has reduced structural
costs in North America by $9 billion since 2005, eliminated raises and
bonuses for executives and salaried employees, and aggressively
addressed its manufacturing footprint, shifting from truck and SUVs to
smaller cars and crossovers.

-- According to The Harbour Report, the manufacturing productivity bible of
the industry, GM has more plants leading their respective segments in
productivity than any other competitor, foreign or domestic.

A Great Automotive Rebuttal- Gm, Chrysler, Ford, Hyundai,Nissan

The Big Three should get the money they need to consolidate and change the direction of the auto industry. The major players will have to work together to survive and build alternative power standardization. Everyone has been screaming they want alternative energy and want to stop the dependency on foreign oil!..Well, If you want electric and hydrogen powered cars,you'll have to pay for the infrastructure overhaul!

Here is a great rebuttal to the Financial Times article (Why Detroit is not Wall Street)The article says The Big 3 Will Fail and Should not be bailed out!


From Mr Stephen J. Collins.

Sir, Your editorial “Why Detroit is not Wall Street” (October 31) takes a disappointingly narrow and harsh view of the unprecedented shocks confronting Chrysler, Ford and General Motors. It also vastly underestimates the importance of the car industry to the US economy.

As the current global economic crisis stabilises, these companies do have the ability to recover and continue their vital role in the future of US manufacturing. The alternative would be a tragedy that would have a devastating impact on the US economy and further diminish the US's competitive standing.

The three American car companies generate 5m American jobs and employ seven out of 10 American car workers. No other American industry generates more employment, annual economic output, exports and retail business.

Your editorial maintains that “bailing out one or more of the carmakers would only delay the inevitable”. But what is being proposed is a partnership between the Detroit carmakers with the US government for advanced automotive research and development and alternative fuel technologies in order to meet our national energy goals. Partnerships like this are what governments around the world have been doing for years to support their national car industries.

The transformation of the US car industry to a new and different energy future is well under way, but the financial crisis and dramatic economic slowdown are presenting huge challenges.

The solution lies in working together – government, management and labour – towards solutions that will get our economy and our industry through this crisis and retain US leadership in the global automotive industry.

Stephen J. Collins,
President,
Automotive Trade Policy Council,
Washington, DC, US
On behalf of Chrysler LLC, Ford Motor Company and General Motors Corporation


Stupid Daily News---Political Roast----Lingerie Football Pics

A Great Automotive Rebuttal- Gm, Chrysler, Ford, Hyundai,Nissan

The Big Three should get the money they need to consolidate and change the direction of the auto industry. The major players will have to work together to survive and build alternative power standardization. Everyone has been screaming they want alternative energy and want to stop the dependency on foreign oil!..Well, If you want electric and hydrogen powered cars,you'll have to pay for the infrastructure overhaul!

Here is a great rebuttal to the Financial Times article (Why Detroit is not Wall Street)The article says The Big 3 Will Fail and Should not be bailed out!


From Mr Stephen J. Collins.

Sir, Your editorial “Why Detroit is not Wall Street” (October 31) takes a disappointingly narrow and harsh view of the unprecedented shocks confronting Chrysler, Ford and General Motors. It also vastly underestimates the importance of the car industry to the US economy.

As the current global economic crisis stabilises, these companies do have the ability to recover and continue their vital role in the future of US manufacturing. The alternative would be a tragedy that would have a devastating impact on the US economy and further diminish the US's competitive standing.

The three American car companies generate 5m American jobs and employ seven out of 10 American car workers. No other American industry generates more employment, annual economic output, exports and retail business.

Your editorial maintains that “bailing out one or more of the carmakers would only delay the inevitable”. But what is being proposed is a partnership between the Detroit carmakers with the US government for advanced automotive research and development and alternative fuel technologies in order to meet our national energy goals. Partnerships like this are what governments around the world have been doing for years to support their national car industries.

The transformation of the US car industry to a new and different energy future is well under way, but the financial crisis and dramatic economic slowdown are presenting huge challenges.

The solution lies in working together – government, management and labour – towards solutions that will get our economy and our industry through this crisis and retain US leadership in the global automotive industry.

Stephen J. Collins,
President,
Automotive Trade Policy Council,
Washington, DC, US
On behalf of Chrysler LLC, Ford Motor Company and General Motors Corporation


Stupid Daily News---Political Roast----Lingerie Football Pics

A Great Automotive Rebuttal- Gm, Chrysler, Ford, Hyundai,Nissan

The Big Three should get the money they need to consolidate and change the direction of the auto industry. The major players will have to work together to survive and build alternative power standardization. Everyone has been screaming they want alternative energy and want to stop the dependency on foreign oil!..Well, If you want electric and hydrogen powered cars,you'll have to pay for the infrastructure overhaul!

Here is a great rebuttal to the Financial Times article (Why Detroit is not Wall Street)The article says The Big 3 Will Fail and Should not be bailed out!


From Mr Stephen J. Collins.

Sir, Your editorial “Why Detroit is not Wall Street” (October 31) takes a disappointingly narrow and harsh view of the unprecedented shocks confronting Chrysler, Ford and General Motors. It also vastly underestimates the importance of the car industry to the US economy.

As the current global economic crisis stabilises, these companies do have the ability to recover and continue their vital role in the future of US manufacturing. The alternative would be a tragedy that would have a devastating impact on the US economy and further diminish the US's competitive standing.

The three American car companies generate 5m American jobs and employ seven out of 10 American car workers. No other American industry generates more employment, annual economic output, exports and retail business.

Your editorial maintains that “bailing out one or more of the carmakers would only delay the inevitable”. But what is being proposed is a partnership between the Detroit carmakers with the US government for advanced automotive research and development and alternative fuel technologies in order to meet our national energy goals. Partnerships like this are what governments around the world have been doing for years to support their national car industries.

The transformation of the US car industry to a new and different energy future is well under way, but the financial crisis and dramatic economic slowdown are presenting huge challenges.

The solution lies in working together – government, management and labour – towards solutions that will get our economy and our industry through this crisis and retain US leadership in the global automotive industry.

Stephen J. Collins,
President,
Automotive Trade Policy Council,
Washington, DC, US
On behalf of Chrysler LLC, Ford Motor Company and General Motors Corporation


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Ford reports it burned through 7.7 Billion Dollars in the 3rd Quarter!

Latest on Ford Motor Companies losses. The reports are that they burned through 7.7 Billion Dollars last quarter and lost $129 Million. They are also talking about make more major job cuts, up to 10% of it's white collar work force maybe cut soon.



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Ford reports it burned through 7.7 Billion Dollars in the 3rd Quarter!

Latest on Ford Motor Companies losses. The reports are that they burned through 7.7 Billion Dollars last quarter and lost $129 Million. They are also talking about make more major job cuts, up to 10% of it's white collar work force maybe cut soon.



Stupid Daily News---Political Roast----Lingerie Football Pics

Ford reports it burned through 7.7 Billion Dollars in the 3rd Quarter!

Latest on Ford Motor Companies losses. The reports are that they burned through 7.7 Billion Dollars last quarter and lost $129 Million. They are also talking about make more major job cuts, up to 10% of it's white collar work force maybe cut soon.



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US auto sales drop to lowest in 17 years

SOUTHFIELD, Mich. - US auto sales plummeted 32 percent in October to the lowest monthly total since January 1991, led by General Motors Corp.'s 45 percent slide, as reduced access to loans and a weaker economy kept consumers off dealer lots.

Ford Motor Co. reported a 30 percent drop in car and light-truck sales from a year earlier, and Toyota Motor Corp.'s declined 23 percent. Honda Motor Co.'s slid 25 percent, Nissan Motor Co.'s were down 33 percent, and Chrysler LLC's fell 35 percent.

"If you adjust for population growth, it's the worst sales month in the post-World War II era" for the industry, said Mike DiGiovanni, GM's chief sales analyst, on a conference call. "Clearly we're in a dire situation."

Industrywide US auto sales fell for the 12th straight month, extending the longest slide in 17 years. Tight credit, falling consumer confidence, and the weakening economy, the same forces that suppressed buying in September, hurt automakers again last month.

October total sales dropped to 838,156 from 1.23 million, according to Autodata Corp. The last time light-vehicle sales were lower was 822,200 in January 1991, according to Autodata.

The seasonally adjusted annual sales rate for the month was 10.6 million, the lowest since February 1983, the Woodcliff Lake, N.J.-based provider of industry statistics said in a statement. The October 2007 rate was 16 million, Autodata said.

"People are feeling a hell of a lot less flush than they've felt in the better part of a generation," said Joe Phillippi, an analyst at AutoTrends Consulting in Short Hills, N.J. "Everybody is taking it on the chin right now."

The financial crisis has dented stock markets worldwide, and a $700 billion US financial aid package hasn't yet spurred renewed lending.

"The carnage was completely widespread" in the industry, GM North American sales chief Mark LaNeve said on the conference call. "In my 27 years, I never saw a month like this."

Industry sales in 2009's first half will be "sobering," Jim Farley, Ford worldwide marketing chief, said on a conference call. Sales this year may fall to fewer than 14 million vehicles, from 16.1 million in 2007, Ford sales analyst George Pipas said on the call.

GM, the largest U.S. automaker, reported sales of 168,719 cars and light trucks, compared with 307,408 a year earlier.

Sales at Ford dropped to 132,248 cars and light trucks, from 189,360, Autodata said.

Toyota, the largest Asian automaker, reported sales of 152,101 vehicles, down from 197,592 a year earlier. Chrysler sold 94,530 vehicles, a drop from 145,316 a year earlier, the Auburn Hills, Michigan-based company said.

Some automakers said they may see sales improvements in November and December because of the US presidential election today and end-of-the-year promotions.



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