Local GM workers ready to strike

Jeremy W. Steele
Lansing State Journal

Local UAW leaders plan to have pickets on hand at General Motors Corp.'s two biggest Lansing-area plants if the union goes through with a strike.
If a deal on a new contract with the Detroit automaker isn't reached by 11 a.m., Chris "Tiny" Sherwood, president of Local 652 in Lansing, said union workers will walk off their jobs.
"We're getting ready to shut the place down," said Sherwood, whose members represent workers at GM's Lansing Grand River assembly plant and the Lansing Regional Stamping plant in Delta Township.
Sherwood said he expects to have about 40 members picketing at gates to Lansing Grand River and Lansing Delta Township.
Those ranks could grow as volunteers join the picket lines.
"We've been told unless they tell us no, we're a go," Sherwood said.
The Lansing Grand River plant makes the Cadillac CTS, STS and SRX. Lansing Delta Township workers build the Saturn Outlook, GMC Acadia and Buick Enclave - crossover vehicles GM has touted as among its hottest-selling vehicles.
The stamping facility is adjacent to the Delta plant. GM also operates the Lansing Service Parts facility.
Contact Jeremy W. Steele at 377-1015 or jwsteele@lsj.com.

Meanwhile 42% of the manufacturing jobs have left the state people are packing up and moving to LA, AL and MS.

This place is getting out of control, I'm not a big fan the relying on the manufacturing sector but the economic climate of Flint Michigan is going to gobble the rest of Michigan.

These guys never learn. The UAW is probably the last dinosaur of a union that will never wake up and smell the coffee.

They had 8,000 workers at GE, Cincinnati, OH making jet engines in the height of the '80s. Right now, GE is building far more engines per day than the previous heyday. But, guess what........the 8,000 workers are down to about 800 and the work is being done by non-union technicians in Durham, NC who are paid more than the dinosaurs. GE currently builds an engine at 50% of the cost of the previous UAW labor in Cincinnati. Why? Because they get 8 hours work from a technician...........they got about 4 hours work........maximum..........from the union.

If I was the President of that union, I'd be bending over backwards with work rule concessions and other changes to help the company survive and make some money. Naturally, these ass-clowns are too retarded for that.

Since this is home base for the UAW I met and know many UAW "Big Shots" they usually have no formal education and from what I am told by people on both sides of the UAW fence they sucked at their jobs so they climbed the UAW ladder. Here is the good part; many are paid by GM to do UAW activities and they are paid double what the people doing the actual work. The UAW is in so much trouble that they are trying to gobble up health care workers.

"Will the last person to leave Lansing please turn out the lights?"

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1991 560 SEC AMG, 199k <---- 300 hp 10:1 ECE euro HV ...

1995 E 420, 170k "The Red Plum" (sold)

2015 BMW 535i xdrive awd Stage 1 DINAN, 6k, <----364 hp

1967 Mercury Cougar, 49k

2013 Jaguar XF, 20k <----340 hp Supercharged, All Wheel Drive (sold)

From what I know.........the committeemen have a paying job with the company. However, they are permitted to leave at any time to perform "union functions". Therefore, they abuse this privilege and never actually show up to perform any useful work.

I've never heard of getting "double" pay for the job..........but, I wouldn't doubt it for a minute.

Lansing will survive; we are picking up some high tech with MSU's supercollider and other projects but the haves/have nots gap is widening so fast you can actually see it which is not a good thing IMO. The war had helped with the manufacturing of the new IED vehicles.

About the lights, its a common joke that someone here flicked the switch in May of 2006 because it really what it looked like a boom went bust in 60 days.

What I meant is they make above $125,000 and have some sweet perks like suites at sports venues, cars and use their muscle to get almost anything they want.

The UAW will be the death of the U.S. auto manufacturers. The pensions of the retired union members are a stranglehold already. Retirement and health care packages that are practically unequalled by anyone else in the private sector will just be too much.

How many jobs are they willing to sacrifice before they come to the realization that concessions might have to be made?

In today's global economy, where something is made is becoming less important to the masses.

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1980 300TD-China Blue/Blue MBTex-2nd Owner, 107K (Alt Blau) OBK #15
'06 Chevy Tahoe Z71 (for the wife & 4 kids, current mule) '03 Honda Odyssey (son #1's ride, reluctantly) '99 GMC Suburban (255K+ miles, semi-retired mule) 21' SeaRay Seville (summer escape pod)

I think what the Auto Workers don't realise is the Union Reps don't give a damn about them or their jobs. They just want to rake in the dough for as long as they can. They could care less if GM goes belly up.

Unfortunately the workers have to vote on a strike and a lot of them will vote for it not really realizing what their doing. None of the old timers will vote for a strike you can bet on that.

It's all politics and BS and the only ones who will get hurt are the workers. All the bigshots will have their golden parachutes ready.

Danny

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OBK member #23

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I cannot forecast anything less than a 1% annual drop in market share for domestic manufacturers. Their products are just too expensive and underengineered to survive against Japanese and Korean competitors. Just wait until China warms up. Remember how the first '80's Hyundai automobiles were derided due to quality issues? Today, I would have no problem owning a Santa Fe, given their strong reputation. Fast forward 20 years to see China assuming a similar position in the auto market. Our grandchildren will remember the Chevrolet marque in the same warm and fuzzy way that we remember Packard.

You are correct, the union does get the workers out of jams so the workers are resistent to fighting the union hall.

I'm not sure if people know this but a new hire has a 90 probation period at a reduced wage after that period that worker is fully vested and makes the same wage as the guy who has been there 20 years, hows that for incentive to do a good job? I guess they do there 90 and get a doctors note for resrtictions, the worst jobs in the plant are interiors because they have to climb in and out of the car for 8 hours, personally I have respect for that guy because I could not imagine climbing in and out of hundreds of cars day in day out.

This month in Popular Science there is an interesting article labled "iClone" detailing how the Chinese are closing products from the iPhone to MB's and improving them. I remember when they knocked the spy plane down and the talking heads commented on how good the Chinese are at reverse engineering.

Well then I guess they shouldn't complain when GM shuts those plants down in a few years.

Talk about shooting yourself in the foot.

__________________
1999 SL500
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

Yep, read "The World is Flat". They are not racing us to the bottom, they are racing us to the top.

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1999 SL500
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200