Bush’s Auto Industry Loans Come With Unfair Conditions for Workers
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After letting the auto industry hang for weeks following the refusal by Republican senators to approve a loan to help automakers get through the end of the year—and a day after Chrysler said it will shut down all 30 of its North American plants for at least one month, putting 46,000 employees out of work—George W. Bush announced his administration’s offer to automakers today.
Bush says he’ll give automakers $17.4 billion in emergency bridge loans. Some $13.4 billion would be available this month and next—$9.4 billion for GM and $4 billion for Chrysler. Ford Motor Co. has said it does not need immediate help.
Chrysler Shutdown Shows Need for Immediate Help for Automakers
After Chrysler announced it is shutting down all of its North American plants starting tomorrow, elected officials, union leaders and other industry supporters urged the Bush administration to immediately provide assistance to the auto industry or risk an economic tsunami in the nation’s manufacturing sector.
Citing a 47 percent drop in sales last month, Chrysler said late yesterday it will shut down all 30 of its North American plants at least until Jan. 19, putting 46,000 employees out of work. The plants are typically shut down from Christmas Eve through New Year’s Day. The workers will receive holiday pay from Dec. 22 through Jan. 2. After that, the workers will be considered laid off for the additional weeks their plants are shuttered. Some of the plants could be shut down into February, according to published reports.
Anti-Worker Republicans Pressure White House for Deep Pay Cuts in Automaker Loan
After a small group of Republican senators put the economy in jeopardy by blocking an emergency bridge loan for the nation’s Big Three automakers, the same minority is pressuring the White House to demand some significant pay cuts from the UAW as a condition of any short-term financial assistance.
Bryce Hoffman writes in yesterday’s Detroit News that the White House may press union workers to accept the terms of a pay-cut amendment introduced by Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.), which would have required the UAW to accept deep concessions that would have effectively neutered the union.
UAW: Union Willing to Go Extra Mile to Save Auto Industry
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A small minority of Republican senators put the entire American economy in danger in an attempt to bust a union contract and drive down workers’ wages.
Last night, the Senate failed to cut off debate and vote on the House-passed $14 billion emergency bridge loan to the nation’s automakers. After the vote, the UAW made it clear it is still willing to go the extra mile to rescue the nations’ auto industry.
Republicans were demanding that workers take big cuts in pay. UAW President Ron Gettelfinger said in a press conference this morning the Republican Senate caucus demands that workers slash wages meant
restructuring had to be done on the backs of workers and retirees. From the beginning, the UAW made it clear that all stakeholders had to be willing to make sacrifices.
House Passes Emergency Loan for Automakers
The U.S. House last night approved and sent to the Senate a $14 billion emergency bridge loan for the nation’s Big Three automakers. The 237-170 vote marks a big step in the effort to prevent the shutting down of one or more of the automakers, which could lead to the loss of more than 3 million jobs in the first year.
The Senate could take up the bill as early as today. Although the loan enjoys strong support from both sides of the aisle and the Bush White House, a small minority of Republican senators have threatened to try and block the legislation when it comes to the floor.
Democrats Send Auto Industry Loan Deal to White House
Congressional Democrats have sent to the White House a proposed $15 billion emergency bridge loan for the nation’s Big Three automakers. The Bush administration is studying the plan, according to a Bush spokesperson. And workers say it cannot be approved soon enough.
Workers are demanding that Congress act quickly to save the domestic auto industry, which many call the backbone of our economy. If one of the Big Three were to shut down, the impact would send ripples throughout the economy, says Brian Schneck, president of UAW Local 259 in Hicksville, N.Y., which has 1,700 members and 3,000 retirees.
