Local GM workers are ready to help
By DARCIE LORENO and LARRY RINGLER Tribune ChronicleArticle Photos
LORDSTOWN - When Violet Click was hired at General Motors' Lordstown plant 32 years ago, she made $2 an hour.
The Farmington woman makes a lot more these days, but the physical labor has led to back and carpal tunnel surgeries. She pays more for health care and, under the current contract, will get the first raise - beyond cost of living - in eight years.
After United Auto Workers officials said Wednesday they would revisit their contract to help the struggling automaker, Click and other GM workers said they'd be willing, on most fronts, to bite the bullet to keep their jobs, as long as it doesn't involve deep cuts to their pay.
"It depends," said Click outside the plant Wednesday. "If they want $10 an hour salary cut, no. The majority of people out here wouldn't. We're hoping things will turn around."
Al Kovach, a 30-year worker at the company, said workers have continually already accepted concessions through the years. But Kovach, of Poland, would be willing to take more to keep his job and hopes they won't deeply affect his salary.
"I think we've given up some concessions, but it obviously wasn't enough," he said. "I'm all up for it when it comes to helping the company. I'd rather have a job with my pay cut ... than not have a job."
But any further concessions should be for workers in all brackets, he said outside the Lordstown site.
"They should be across the board," he said, adding if worse comes to worst, he'll retire and get a part-time job.
Lordstown workers will do what they can to help GM - within reason, local union leaders said as they returned from a special UAW meeting in Detroit to address GM's cash crunch.
''I think the members know the importance of what's going on,'' said Jim Graham, president of Local 1112 that represents 3,400 workers at the Lordstown assembly plant. ''The biggest thing is getting the loan next week. Then the International will sit down and see if it can squeeze more money from the contract.''
International UAW leaders said they would forgo the controversial jobs bank - an arrangement agreed to years ago by automakers to pay workers nearly all their wages while laid off - and delay GM's payment into a special fund to cover retiree health care.
The union also said it would consider other changes in the national agreement. Members might have to vote on some changes, while other areas could be changed without a vote, Graham said.
''There's language in the national agreement where they can tweak a paragraph or an appendix, and it doesn't have to be ratified, but I don't know what they're talking about at this point,'' he said.
Dave Green, president of the 1,100 worker United Auto Workers Local 1714 of the Lordstown Metal Center plant, said his members ''have continually stepped up to the plate and recognized tough issues.''
But, he said, many workers draw the line at giving up wages and benefits, something he said would create hardships for entire communities, not just workers.
''People have built their lives around that wage,'' he said of the average $28 an hour autoworkers make. ''To take that away would be detrimental not only to them and their families but to communities because we'd be less consumers.''
Green said a UAW-hired analysis firm determined GM would be forced into bankruptcy by year's end without the $18 billion loan, $4 billion of which is needed this month.
''We cannot let that happen,'' he said, pointing out that GM wouldn't be able to reorganize under Chapter 11 bankruptcy but would be forced to go to Chapter 7 liquidation, in which the 100-year-old company would be sold off.
Area labor analyst John Russo, co-director of Youngstown State University's Center for Working-Class Studies, said plant-by-plant specifics are unknown, possibly opening the door for factories that survive pending cuts to compete against each other for products.
''The question many autoworkers are asking is, since GM is closing some plants, will individual plants be whipsawed in terms of taking more work rules and concessions?'' he said.
Russo expects Congress to approve the Big 3 loans but said the real hurdle remains lack of demand for vehicles due to the failing economy, which this week was officially said to be in recession.
Click said no matter what happens, she wishes more of the public would recognize what workers have already given up and offer more support for workers when it comes to their concessions.
"The people out there have no idea what we've given up," said Click. "We have, every time, taken concessions. We do make good money, but we work."
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bazboy
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12-04-08 6:26 PM
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first of all lakeview schools problem are from mismanagement tell wilson boy to head to washington and ask for a bail out himself as far as gm and delphi i would not take one cut you guys have done enough its time for the top end to take cuts and anyone b------- about union wages are crazy they set the standards and all of us benefit. i say big 3 stand firm, i didnt hear of one bank employee taking any wage cuts i dont think they even had to go to washington [buddy system]
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kellar4
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12-04-08 5:55 PM
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NE Ohio has gone to the dumps for almost 20 years or more.... someone in the higher chains need to fix it!
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escaped
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12-04-08 5:42 PM
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OH SO YOU THINK IF GM PULLS OUR PENSIONS YOU ARE GOING TO HAVE A JOB? YEA OK I know I'll have a job, jerk.
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PaGuyNow
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12-04-08 3:25 PM
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lol @ "drone"...we're all drones. gotta keep up with the drones' lol
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Mark33
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12-04-08 2:59 PM
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The bottom line is that no one on here would turn down an average wage of $28/ hr. If GM offered it, you'd be a fool to turn it down. But, the time has come to take a significant cut to ensure the survival of your company. That cuts will be from Wagner all the way down to the lowest drone on the food chain. Management and the UAW created this mess, they need to both cut alot of fat in order to fix it.
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cortlandmom
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12-04-08 2:58 PM
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ctowngirl79, you are taking everything out of context. NOONE wants the auto industry to fail. Everyone knows the impact. Lakeviews problems started years ago before any of this with the increase in food, gas, wages, double dippers, taxes and utilities. They failed to receive money from taxes that people did not pay or foreclosed homes on. The list goes on and on. I believe that if you can go out and buy a big screen plasma TV for x-mas then you can afford to put a couple of hundreds of dollars a year into the children. The children should not suffer. I live on a modest income but I always vote yes on the levies to pass because my children go to the district. I am thinking of moving because of the academics that they are doing away with. Lakeview, like the auto industry, has overspent on things that they did not need and are now suffering. Innocent people and children are paying for this because of greed and being able to live the high life for so long.
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BigDreams
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12-04-08 2:44 PM
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ctowngirl79-Very well said. Other communities follow suit.
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BigDreams
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12-04-08 2:20 PM
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I used ALL union labor when I build my house four years ago. I could have used unskilled labor, at a lower rate, but I plan on staying there for more then a five years. I respect all the trades, just as I respect the UAW for what they they do.
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NEWSREADER
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12-04-08 2:14 PM
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YOU GO BIG DREAMS AND I HOPE ALL OF THEM COME TRUE FOR YOU
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david04
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12-04-08 2:13 PM
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I have no problem with you gm and delphi folks making the wages you earn or you benifets. i'd just like to know why since you folks are so pro union and believe you're worth every cent you earn you don't think the rest of us are worth what you are. example...when you had that new home built in shepherds hill did you hire a union plumber to plumb your new home ? or a union electrician ? a union mason ect ?... most likely you didn't because it cost to much and you don't think anyone should earn what you do even in the skilled trades. most of you wouldn't hire a general contractor that was union because of the cost. so i don't think most of the posters here hate you folks, they like me just don't understand the attitude when it comes to others earning what you do when you have to pay. i for one certainly hope you folks can keep your jobs and continue to earn a decent wage because you've kept me working repairing the half assed jobs done on your homes by unskilled labor.
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Justmyopinion
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12-04-08 2:11 PM
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Good Point BigDreams....my point expanded...cut the fat and start at the top!
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BigDreams
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12-04-08 2:07 PM
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All parties involved should accept part of the blame, but if you have read these posts, or the posts on other websites, people blame the unions 95% of the time. Do they blame the engineers/supervisors who make $90,000/year to supervise 5 other engineers?
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cortlandmom
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12-04-08 2:07 PM
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ctowngirl79, they don't pass the levies now when they have a job. Yes, I do know how many residence work there but the district is not totally GM or Delphi. A levy in this district will not pass one way or another. I am not against the people who work there nor do I want to see a collapse of the auto industry. It is just that they created a mess that they say they can not survive without help. I don't buy into this whole thing. What the media and the CEO remarks is telling us is not hte whole story. One minute Ford is going under and now they have enough money to survive through next year. The stories don't come together. First they wanted 25 billion and now want 34 billion. If they do go under, there will be someone behind the fat raises of the 3 to regroup and open up again.
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NEWSREADER
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12-04-08 2:01 PM
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SCHOOLS WILL BE IN FISCAL EMERGENCIES
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NEWSREADER
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12-04-08 1:58 PM
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I do have to say it is a shame that this country has made it so that Americans can't hardly make a living. When they started builing plants in Mexico years ago, The Delphi employees had a fit. We knew where things were heading. But what could we actually do. We talked to management and the Union. Now fast forward 20 years and look at the mess we are all in.
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Justmyopinion
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12-04-08 1:58 PM
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Yes, I do believe that the IUE and UAW should accept their share of the blame. It is hard to imagine that the Big 3 lied to them when doing contracts or didn't supply them with "real" information. If they just "took their word" then the UAW officials that I am talking about should be FIRED because of their stupidity. They are voted in to represent the workers...wouldn't you think they would get the facts?!?
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PaGuyNow
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12-04-08 1:58 PM
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backbone? lol that's what we thought about the steel industry too...it's not much more than a faded memory people will still buy cars because they have to, it's just a matter of who will be producing them. let 'em drown!! lol ...bunch o' primitive neanderthals in this country, no wonder we can't compete. ...but we sure can reproduce, lol.
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NEWSREADER
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12-04-08 1:53 PM
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WE DO NOT THINK THIS IS GOING TO BE THE END OF THE WORLD. BUT WE DO KNOW THINGS ARE CHANGING, AND IT WILL IMPACT US. BUT MOST OF THE TIME CHANGES JUST DON'T AFFECT THE PEOPLE THAT IT WAS INTENDED FOR.
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BigDreams
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12-04-08 1:53 PM
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The writing HAS been on the wall. Do you think that the UAW or the IUE is to blame? Do you think they have access to all the figures and numbers that the company has? If the company offers $28/hour and says business is fine, why wouldn't the unions sign off on the contract?
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Justmyopinion
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12-04-08 1:52 PM
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The UAW will make concessions? What, lower wages, less benefits....no. Do you know why? Because they feel that it isn't their fault that the auto industry is in the mess it is today. Well, excuse me....but the UAW officials should be FIRED also. Talk about change?? There should be change and it should start at the top.
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Justmyopinion
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12-04-08 1:49 PM
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Well, the backbone of this country is failing and the CEOs still have their jobs. So, because of BAD business decisions and little foresight on the part of the CEOs all Americans will pay. Are they still employed? Of course they are. They (CEOs) should be FIRED! Drive to Washington in Hybrids, what?! Are these Hybrids that they are currently selling at affordable prices for American citizens. No.
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cortlandmom
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12-04-08 1:48 PM
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The writing has been on the wall at Delphi and GM for 15+ years. Why has something not been done before this to prevent a collapse? How much money has been made over the last 15+ years? This is not news. It has been happening for years upon depth ears and blinding eyes. They had over a decade to correct the problem before it got this far but did nothing. Now it may be too late for help.
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BigDreams
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12-04-08 1:45 PM
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cortlandmom-I do not work at GM, nor I am jealous of their wage. The American auto industry is not "your everyday business". It quite possibly might be the backbone of the entire country.
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NEWSREADER
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12-04-08 1:39 PM
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THANK YOU BIG DREAMS
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cortlandmom
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12-04-08 1:38 PM
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I don't want anyone to lose their jobs. You GM employees think it will be the end of the world. It will not be so. There are options to keep it running without a bailout. Everyday businesses fail and there is no bailout for them. Why should the money come from taxpayers again when the fault is not ours. Greed is the fault on Wall Street and big business. It is the little people who have to pay for this.
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