The UAW strike at American Axle has ground on for three months, but an agreement with the union was reached on Friday. General Motors had pledged $200 million dollars to help get things rolling again after being forced to idle plants. The action has reportedly cost GM $800 million, so what's a few more on top of that to get plants back online? With that logic, the automaker's managed to shake loose another $18 million to pay for supplemental unemployment benefits, bringing its total commitment to $218 million in hopes of wrapping up the spat with its axle supplier. [Source: Automotive News - Sub. Req.]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Jeff Johnson @ May 19th 2008 8:45AM
Every one of these strikers needs to be fired, when you cost your employer nearly a quater of a BILLION dollars, thats not exactly a bargaining chip right there.
Do they not realize that if they keep pulling this type of stuff (and they will) eventually none of them will have a job?
Whatever happened to work hard for what you want? Not go on strike and expect the world to bend over backwards for you.
People that strike make me sick.
Chris @ May 19th 2008 8:52AM
Whats worse is that they hurt other people who work and rely on the pay check all because of their selfish needs.
You can guarantee that GM will now definitely get a new supplier within a few years and the next line these guys walk will be the unemployment line
mk @ May 19th 2008 9:53AM
Between the 800M$ that the strike cost in lost production, and the 218M$ that the settlement will now cost...
This little temper tantrum cost GM over a billion dollars.
Agreed, these people should be out on their collective-bargaining butts.
This is beyond childish, it is truly detrimental, and not just to GM. Some of these people think that they have won with this sort of behavior, and will no doubt do it again.
Brian St. John @ May 19th 2008 9:16AM
Really. The weather there SUCKS. It's almost summer here in Germany.
inteller @ May 19th 2008 9:23AM
What they don't say is how much it SAVED them by not producing gas guzzling bloated junk that rot on lots.
Frank @ May 19th 2008 9:33AM
your ignorance is showing
Rocketboy @ May 19th 2008 10:05AM
Good job guys.. way to bring a bag of nails and a hammer to the coffin party.
Geo @ May 19th 2008 10:22AM
I hope every employee that walked a picket line is out of work within the next 18 months and flipping burgers @ McD's. Corpporations should have the right to hire the best and the brightest and pay them accordingly, not to be held hostage by the rank and file that continue to cut of their nose to spite their face.
cly @ May 19th 2008 10:34AM
"supplemental unemployment benefits"
LOL
Corey W. @ May 19th 2008 11:26AM
I don't want to hear sh*t else about sending jobs overseas!! It's all going to come full circle soon and I hope the Union takes care of your @ss when the contract is cut. GM has already shown it can go to another vendor. It's not over yet....
Alfa @ May 19th 2008 12:13PM
These slack-jawed halfwits never learn.
Aki @ May 19th 2008 1:49PM
The irony is, they're striking in part because of fears of their jobs moving to Mexico.
Hmm, and isn't it because of UAW pulling off crap like *this strike* that GM keeps pondering a Mexico shift? UAW head honchos probably failed basic math in grade school: they somehow look at GM's quarterly 200+ million loses and then figure there's more money to take from GM. When a company is posting giant net losses every quarter, that's probably a good indication that you can't ask for better benefits. Pathetic.
Michael @ May 19th 2008 5:04PM
The problem is that these people have a false sense of self-worth in the marketplace.