President-Elect on the Bridge Loan to the Auto Industry

The video comes to us by way of the Dailybeast who gets it from MSNBC last week.

What I find interesting, is that Citi, AIG and others didn't really have to present any plans for their bailouts and AIG continues to pay out bonuses and has extravagant trips even after they get a bailout.

So, I'm a little confused how a company like Citi can say they went a little too far in lending and that got them into trouble, but the Auto Industry can't say hey, there's a serious market down turn caused by the mess from the financial sector and we need help. Hell, you can even hear what Citi thinks caused their mess, again, from the Dailybeast:



The current financial mess this country is in comes in part from lending to borrowers who couldn't pay, popular know by underwriters as Liar Loans. These are loans with no required documentation. So, we have a freeze in the credit markets, it's harder to get loans for houses and cars and this hurts companies like Citi (companies that actually helped cause the problems) and they get a bailout, but the Auto-Industry can't even get a loan? Somehow, I think this has more to do with Union-Bashing than anything and the comments from President-Elect Obama are very disappointing to me. Very, very disappointing.

CEO Pay, Roskam Inquires

I've been watching the hearings, hearing the testimony and pulling for the bridge loan. Then there was this tidbit, reported by Dana Milbank in the Washington Post:

So it was hard to feel sorry for the executives when Rep. Peter Roskam (R-Ill.), late in the hearing, reminded them again that "the symbolism of the private jet is difficult," and mischievously asked the witnesses whether, in another symbolic gesture, they would be willing to work for $1 a year, as Nardelli has offered to do.

"I don't have a position on that today," demurred Wagoner (2007 total compensation: $15.7 million).

"I understand the intent, but I think where we are is okay," said Mulally ($21.7 million).

"I'm asking about you," Roskam pressed.

"I think I'm okay where I am," Mulally said.

And don't even think about asking him to fly commercial.

CEO pay is a hot issue. AIG is goind out of its way to pay out for their "top managers" and then you have the big 3. The emphasis has been on the income of workers represented by the UAW (think Mitchells smarmy comments from Sunday's Meet the Press) and then there's reality:

Chrysler $29-$33:
More contract info by company here: http://uaw.org/contracts/index.php

TOYOTA
$30/hour

EXECS
Alan Mulally
Chief Executive Officer
Ford Motor Company
$22,750,385 in total 2007 compensation

G. Richard Wagoner
Chief Executive Officer
General Motors Corporation
$19,761,874 in total 2007 compensation.

Assuming a 40 hour work week, that's $9,615 an hour for Wagoner - 150% of the average CEO salary of $6,153/hour.

Chrysler isn't traded, but here's this article from the weekend about how Chrysler is paying about $30 million in retention bonuses to keep top executives while cutting thousands of jobs.

How much does the average AIG worker make? What's the median? How about the other "bailed out" organizations? Ones where they sent their IT operations off shore to India and elsewhere and canned all of their IT people like IndyMac (they weren't bailed out, just belly up)?

It's fine to get these numbers, but the issue isn't how much the average autoworker makes or the average Toyota or Honda worker, the message should be that these are American Workers who WORK. They produce American jobs, they contribute to their communities, they raise their kids, they vote and yeah, their represented by a union but they don't deserve anything less than what Wall Street has already gotten. That includes the Executives because not to do it means a destruction of local economies, not just detroit, we're talking Parma Ohio, Lordstown, St. Louis and this doesn't include the rolling effect on suppliers.

But let's take another look at AIG, again, from the Washington Post:

American International Group plans to pay out $503 million in deferred compensation to some of its top employees, saying it must tap the funds to keep valuable workers from exiting the troubled insurance giant.

News of the payments to top AIG talent comes as the federal government has just put more money into saving the company from bankruptcy, beefing up the total public commitment to $152 billion. Meanwhile, members of Congress are questioning the company's expenditures -- including lavish business trips to resorts -- during a time when taxpayers are on the hook for the bailout.
snip

Companies over the past 20 years have increasingly use deferred compensation as a way to attract and retain highly paid executives. Under these plans, top talent can postpone taking some of their large annual salaries for years -- often until a set date -- and can put off being taxed on it. Some wait to take the funds until they retire, when they would presumably be in a lower tax bracket.

Few executives seem to understand the correlation we common Americans make with failure and excess. I for one see their salaries and wonder, WTF?

But after watching what's been going on with AIG (and the scandalous behavior AFTER their bailout-not a loan), it's just incredible that these executives from the big three flew to DC on private corporate jets. But for Mullaly and Wagoner to say no to taking a massive ONE YEAR pay cut as Nardelli has said he'd do, well, damn, I wouldn't have given them a bridge loan either, because they aren't a good risk. Of course, that's me speaking as a former home loan underwriter. If I had a homebuyer with this kind of credit, this kind of debt load while arriving in a vehicle well beyond what should be their means, I'd have to really think long and hard about those combined factors and here and now, it'd be one tough call.

What's saddest of all, it seems only Nardelli really gets what's at stake in this financial melt down, survival.

Why Do I Read Washington Post Garbage?

I tend to read the stupidity of folks like Gerson because, it's important to know who stupid and inane they are, makes for nice entertainment and laughter. Well, entertainment until I read today's slop:

The coming bailout will be a major challenge for Obama. If he caves in to the auto unions that helped elect him and merely shores up a failing industry, he will start his presidency on a note of weakness. If he insists on a serious restructuring that creates sustainable companies -- including large pay and benefit cuts, and massive downsizing -- he could gain a reputation for toughness similar to Ronald Reagan's after his early firing of striking air traffic controllers in 1981.

Okay, so I highlighted what I think you should see. This is the right wing talking point of folks like Brokaw and Mitchell and here Gerson does it, too. He's blaming the union.

Unions are not monolithic creatures.

Unions do not provide the work.

Unions are not out to kill industry.

Unions ARE made up of their membership: WORKERS.

Unions ARE responsive to their membership.

The UAW IS NOT THE VILLAIN.

In the case of the auto industry, these workers have given up things that someone at Wal-Mart has never had the option to ever have and things that Gerson can't begin to think about going without; from pension cut backs to two tiered hiring to health care. They've given up a lot including cutting hours, retraining to leave the big 3 or other routes to make it easier for the big 3 to survive and not only survive, but to prosper.

Consumerism wasn't fueled by GM and certainly not by the UAW. There is a major issue right now in the financial markets and it's meant a lot of people are out of work, fuel prices caused a lot of people to cut back, me included. GM has been doing cutting edge research that they have funded in terms of fuel cells (unfortunately would mean a retooling and supply of the energy industry and we aren't there yet even if GM were able to produce the fuel cell cars now enmasse) and I'm looking forward to the Chevy Volt in 2010 even with a possible $40k price tag.

Blaming workers and their union representation for the problems caused by Wall Street is not only ridiculous, it's dangerous.

GM: The Troy Clarke e-mail

I have been surfing the tubes for more on the e-mail but only seem to find Wing nuts who keep calling this bridge loan a bailout (dudes, seriously, it's NOT a bailout). But in my wanderings, I came across this:

You made the right choice when you put your confidence in General Motors, and we appreciate your past support. I want to assure you that we are making our best vehicles ever, and we have exciting plans for the future. But we need your help now. Simply put, we need you to join us to let Congress know that a bridge loan to help U.S. automakers also helps strengthen the U.S. economy and preserve millions of American jobs.

Despite what you may be hearing, we are not asking Congress for a bailout but rather a loan that will be repaid.

The U.S. economy is at a crossroads due to the worldwide credit crisis, and all Americans are feeling the effects of the worst economic downturn in 75 years. Despite our successful efforts to restructure, reduce costs and enhance liquidity, U.S. auto sales rely on access to credit, which is all but frozen through traditional channels.

The consequences of the domestic auto industry collapsing would far exceed the $25 billion loan needed to bridge the current crisis. According to a recent study by the Center for Automotive Research:

• One in 10 American jobs depends on U.S. automakers
• Nearly 3 million jobs are at immediate risk
• U.S. personal income could be reduced by $150 billion
• The tax revenue lost over 3 years would be more than $156 billion

Discussions are now underway in Washington, D.C., concerning loans to support U.S. carmakers. I am asking for your support in this vital effort by contacting your state representatives.

Please take a few minutes to go to www.gmfactsandfiction.com, where we have made it easy for you to contact your U.S. senators and representatives. Just click on the "I'm a Concerned American" link under the "Mobilize Now" section, and enter your name and ZIP code to send a personalized e-mail stating your support for the U.S. automotive industry.

Let me assure you that General Motors has made dramatic improvements over the last 10 years. In fact, we are leading the industry with award-winning vehicles like the Chevrolet Malibu, Cadillac CTS, Buick Enclave, Pontiac G8, GMC Acadia, Chevy Tahoe Hybrid, Saturn AURA and more. We offer 18 models with an EPA estimated 30 MPG highway or better — more than Toyota or Honda. GM has 6 hybrids in market and 3 more by mid-2009. GM has closed the quality gap with the imports, and today we are putting our best quality vehicles on the road.

Please share this information with friends and family using the link on the site.

Thank you for helping keep our economy viable.

Sincerely,

Troy Clarke

Now, I'd link to it, but ugh, right wing sites and the comments made my eyes bleed. So, I decided to look a little further and pull in information that really needs to be out there, and that information is about the consequences of DOING NOTHING.

Should we taxpayers extend a loan to GM so that it can operate until the U.S. economy recovers? I say yes!

If you think a bridge loan to GM so that the lights can stay on through this economic tsunami is expensive, then think about the cost of a GM failure.

Let's be clear, the alternative for GM and the domestic industry is not a cake walk through the bankruptcy courts, resulting in a reorganization that some think would put dealers and the UAW in their place and ensure future success.

No, even if GM could get debtor-in-possession financing to keep the lights on (which is extremely unlikely in today's credit crisis environment), Chapter 11 means a collapse of sales and a downward spiral into a Chapter 7 liquidation.

snip

Do these "instant experts" who call for the implosion of the domestic industry have the faintest clue as to what it means if it were allowed to happen?

GM's 100,000 American jobs will die. Health care for a million Americans will be lost or at risk. Hundreds of GM's 1,300 suppliers will fail.

There are 14,000 domestic-oriented dealers in the U.S. that employ approximately 750,000 Americans with a payroll of around $35 billion. Blink — they are gone.

Take just Texas, for instance. GM builds vehicles, including Tahoes, in a plant in Arlington, just outside of Dallas. The company has a major parts distribution warehouse in Fort Worth. These 4,289 Texans would lose their jobs, the suppliers to these operations would fail, the communities would lose their tax bases, and the state would lose its tax revenues.

The effect of the collapse of the U.S. automobile industry would be devastating in ways in which these "experts" are not considering. Nearly 3 million jobs would be lost in the first year alone — with another 2.5 million to follow in the next two years. Personal income in the United States would drop by more than $150 billion in the first year. The cost to local, state and federal governments could top $156 billion over three years in lost taxes and unemployment and health care benefits. And, due to supplier bankruptcies, domestic automobile production would most likely fall to zero, even by international producers.

The United States is in an economic crisis. The entire U.S. automobile industry has been devastated and it's not just the domestic manufacturers that have been affected, as many have asserted.

The issues facing GM, Chrysler and Ford aren't because of just poor market reading (yeah, they didn't read the market well and produced gas guzzling SUVs for way too long) there are other factors at work here and those factors include everything that Mr. Clarke mentions and all the info mentioned By W. Carroll Smith (Smith is the owner of Monument Chevrolet in Pasadena, a past chairman of the Houston Automobile Dealers Association and a director of the National Automobile Dealers Association).

We have to decide now not tomorrow how we can help the auto industry, Hang'em all isn't a solution to these problems, we need to bridge this gap for them and take the opportunity to get them on a better foundation. We can't afford to have the ENTIRE US AUTO INDUSTRY FAIL.

The UAW IS NOT Responsible for GM or Ford or Chrysler

Blaming the union and its membership (um, I mean WORKERS here) is absolutely ridiculous.

Emptywheel has an excellent post up right now on this that deserves a closer look:

What the AP Left Out about the UAWBy: emptywheel Saturday November 15, 2008 1:42 pm

21diggs digg it

The AP has an article reporting that Ron Gettelfinger, head of the UAW, says the union will not make any more concessions to keep the Big Three in business. I guess the editor cut a big chunk--because the article obviously falls short of explaining why the UAW is taking this stand. Here's what the AP left in:

''The focus has to be on the economy as a whole as opposed to a UAW contract,'' Gettelfinger told reporters on a conference call, noting the labor costs now make up 8 percent to 10 percent of the cost of a vehicle.

''We have made dramatic, dramatic changes and the UAW was applauded for that,'' he said.

Instead, Gettelfinger blamed the problems the auto industry is suffering from on things beyond its control -- the housing slump, the credit crunch that has made financing a vehicle tough and the 1.2 million jobs that have been lost in the past year.
''We're here not because of what the auto industry has done,'' he said. ''We're here because of what has happened to the economy.''

And here's what the AP didn't report (I'm sure it was just an oversight, really).

In its contract last year, the UAW made painful concessions, adopting a two-tier wage structure, such that new employees make just $12 to $15 an hour. The move is projected to bring the American manufacturers in line with their Japanese rivals' non-union labor costs in the near future.

In addition, the union has taken responsibility for providing retiree healthcare, thereby eliminating one of the last remaining competitive disadvantages for the American manufacturers' unionized workforce as compared to their Japanese rivals.

With these agreements, the UAW has managed to save jobs, while still providing the superior labor force that leads most segments (big PDF, see page 10-11) in terms of the most efficient plants measured in hours per vehicle.

The UAW's workers have made deep concessions to ensure American-owned auto industry remains competitive with its foreign competitors. Now that the American-owned manufacturers have eliminated some of the structural disadvantages that gave foreign competitors a market advantage, it would be a terrible waste for its country not to do what's necessary to sustain American manufacturing though this tough financial period.

There. Now it tells a more complete story.

I actually discussed the Media's anti-union bias yesterday after watching Andrea Mitchell and Tom Brokaw shilling for the right wing on Meet the Press. Here's what I had to say yesterday:

I don't normally watch the Sunday talk shows, they just end up being so damn insulting to my intelligence. But for some odd reason I started watching it this morning and no, I wasn't disappointed, it completely insulted my intelligence and that of everyone else who happened to have the misfortune of listening.

Andrea Mitchell decided on a whim to bring up the Employee Free Choice Act, but of course, she used the Right Wing Talking Points, only to be re-enforced in those wingnut talk points.

Mitchell: ...The labor unions will be asked to make some kind of concessions, and what the uaw leaders said in an unusual press conference only yesterday was we’ve made enough concessions. So, as you point out there is the clash, the ability to organize, card check is the short term for it.

Brokaw: Without a secret ballot

Mitchell: without a secret ballot, is a BIG concession to labor. and that is gonna be one of the the early fights in this congress. And Barack Obama is going to have to make a choice on all these things as to whether he can find ways around it. And can answer the economists question as to why Toyota is successful, which is producing American jobs it’s just that their not union jobs.

Okay, I can answer that for you Andrea and let me put it into a way that your little mind can understand:

Toyota competes with GM and Ford for labor, assembly line work and precision assembly workers. Because they compete in the same market as GM and Ford and Chrysler, they have to pay the same wages. However, their benefits are not as good as those of GM, Ford and Chrysler. In fact, Toyota doesn’t provide a pension, health care to retirees and a number of other incentives that the unions which you hate have secured for their membership over YEARS and YEARS of work. But if you want to toss that out the window and ask why doesn't GM just declare Bankruptcy and gut all of their retirees pensions, health care and agreements with their employees, then Andrea, you also need to ask yourself what happens to all of those people? What happens to the pensioner who has no income or health care?

Toyota and Honda do not play on equal footing with GM and Chrysler and Andrea and Brokaw should know that. See, I think they do, they just don't really care. It's not like the economy is hurting them or that NBC is just going to turn off their spigot.

And Tom, let me also explain something else to you, something that you obviously don’t understand.

The Employee Free Choice Act makes it possible for EMPLOYEES to CHOOSE an election or CHOOSE to sign their card and leave it to that. Right now, it’s up to the BOSS and NOT the EMPLOYEE. And there is no SECRECY in today’s standards because the Boss gets to know who the employees are that have signed their cards and want a union.

But what you and Andrea also ignored as a concept is that organizing a union isn’t nearly as important as having a way to get employers to the table to negotiate. The Employee Free Choice Act provides for stiff penalties for employers who ignore the bargaining rights of their employees. I think this is what really is the heart in this fight. It's not that employees can organize, it's that the employers who screw with the results face actual penalties. There are penalties now, but it takes forever and the results of the penalties take YEARS to be realized if ever.

Despite what the rightwing says or lies about in terms of workers and unions, it is still the policy of the United States of America to ENCOURAGE UNIONIZATION:

National Labor Relations Act

The denial by some employers of the right of employees to organize and the refusal by some employers to accept the procedure of collective bargaining lead to strikes and other forms of industrial strife or unrest, which have the intent or the necessary effect of burdening or obstructing commerce by (a) impairing the efficiency, safety, or operation of the instrumentalities of commerce; (b) occurring in the current of commerce; (c) materially affecting, restraining, or controlling the flow of raw materials or manufactured or processed goods from or into the channels of commerce, or the prices of such materials or goods in commerce; or (d) causing diminution of employment and wages in such volume as substantially to impair or disrupt the market for goods flowing from or into the channels of commerce.

The inequality of bargaining power between employees who do not possess full freedom of association or actual liberty of contract and employers who are organized in the corporate or other forms of ownership association substantially burdens and affects the flow of commerce, and tends to aggravate recurrent business depressions, by depressing wage rates and the purchasing power of wage earners in industry and by preventing the stabilization of competitive wage rates and working conditions within and between industries.

Experience has proved that protection by law of the right of employees to organize and bargain collectively safeguards commerce from injury, impairment, or interruption, and promotes the flow of commerce by removing certain recognized sources of industrial strife and unrest, by encouraging practices fundamental to the friendly adjustment of industrial disputes arising out of differences as to wages, hours, or other working conditions, and by restoring equality of bargaining power between employers and employees.

Experience has further demonstrated that certain practices by some labor organizations, their officers, and members have the intent or the necessary effect of burdening or obstructing commerce by preventing the free flow of goods in such commerce through strikes and other forms of industrial unrest or through concerted activities which impair the interest of the public in the free flow of such commerce. The elimination of such practices is a necessary condition to the assurance of the rights herein guaranteed.

It is declared to be the policy of the United States to eliminate the causes of certain substantial obstructions to the free flow of commerce and to mitigate and eliminate these obstructions when they have occurred by encouraging the practice and procedure of collective bargaining and by protecting the exercise by workers of full freedom of association, self-organization, and designation of representatives of their own choosing, for the purpose of negotiating the terms and conditions of their employment or other mutual aid or protection.

So, Andrea and Tom, please understand that not only are you two shills for the anti-union anti-worker establishment fronted by the likes of Hannity, Limbaugh and McCain, but you two also don't seem to know your asses from a hole in the ground.

Employee Free Choice is Good For The Economy BECAUSE it is good for workers, unless of course you don't think workers are part of the economy or deserve to be represented by a union, a union of their own choosing.

Why does the Media hate workers so much? And worse, why are union production crews and writers continuing to spill out this garabage when in the end, they know it's garbage? If you're producing CBS, NBC, ABC or any other cable or network news and YOU are a union member, can you just think a minute before you write for a teleprompter anything that's anti-union and anti-worker garbage? Your brothers and sisters of the UAW would appreciate it.

Hell, I'd appreciate it.

Canada: 8,900 Ford workers ratify new contract without 2-tier, GM and Chrysler next

With healthcare not on the negotiating table, Ford and the CAW have come to terms with 78% of the membership in agreement. The biggest part. The CAW has not thrown their future member under the bus.

From CAW - The Canadian Auto Workers Union (5/5/08) :

The more than 8,900 CAW members working at Ford in Oakville, Windsor, St. Thomas and Bramalea voted 78 per cent in favour of the new collective agreement on Saturday and Sunday.

“This agreement is a victory for our members,” said CAW President Buzz Hargrove. “It takes care of current workers and retirees while recognizing the challenges facing the industry. And it doesn’t do this on the backs of future workers either, with any sort of two-tier structure.”

This round of Big Three bargaining will be the last for both Hargrove and CAW National Secretary-Treasurer Jim O’Neil, ending a thirty year era.

“Our members see first hand how unfair trade, a high Canadian dollar and soaring oil prices are all impacting their job security and understand better than anyone that these issues must be dealt with,” said Mike Vince, chair of the CAW-Ford Master Bargaining Committee and president of CAW Local 200.

“We’ve done our job by negotiating a responsible and pragmatic agreement and we will continue to keep the heat on the federal government to address the problems that are eroding the auto industry today,” said Hargrove.

Now they are going after GM to get more work and seeking early negotiations with Chrysler

• CAW wants more work at GM plants, or no deal - The Star (5/6/08)
  

Hargrove said parent General Motors Corp. made product commitments to the United Auto Workers in the United States last fall, and he expects the same assurances here.

The union, which represents about 13,000 GM workers, is looking for long-term transmission work at the Windsor operation, extra parts output at plants in St. Catharines and additional models at a new flexible manufacturing complex in Oshawa.

• CAW, Chrysler consider early talks - the Star (5/7/08)
  

The current contracts with GM and Chrysler run out in September and affect around 22,000 workers.

Hargrove said the CAW and Chrysler "had a very cordial meeting," to share the information on the pattern agreement at Ford and the company "agreed that they would get back to us in a couple of days."

The CAW typically reaches an agreement with one of the Big Three automakers and then uses that deal as a framework for deals with the other two automakers where it has collective agreements.

Tell the Senate Banking Committee to block Wal-Mart for good! With a dash of Toxic product, health care, UAW, USW and Chinese product news included

Figured I'd get a bit of info out there today.

FROM: Wal-Mart Watch

The Senate Banking Committee is currently considering legislation to permanently block commercial retailers like Wal-Mart from receiving industrial loan charters. Please send a note to the Senate Banking Committee and ask them to stop the Bank of Wal-Mart.

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Toxic products, the newest issue of Wal-Mart Watch shows the utter lack of the corporation taking responsibility. *Clicking the link orpicture will open a PDF file.

Danger for Sale: How Wal-Mart's Unethical Practices Endanger Consumers

In this issue, “Danger for Sale,” we expose Wal-Mart’s woeful record on consumer product safety issues. Whether it is E. Coli in the meat, melamine in the dog food, or lead paint on the children’s toys – far too many dangerous products have turned up on Wal-Mart’s shelves, and far too little effort has been given by Wal-Mart to ensure the safety and well-being of its customers.

As the largest retailer in the world, Wal-Mart could use its clout to push manufacturers into raising the safety standards of their products. Instead, Wal-Mart continues to demand low prices at any cost and any standard from manufacturers, putting consumers at risk.

Click here to download Issue 4 of Wal-Mart Watch In Depth: Danger for Sale >>

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In other news Trader Joe's is eliminating 1 ingredient products from China from it's shelves. More info on that and background can be found below

• [SFGate.com] Food Conscious: Battle over country of origin heating up

(1-16-08) "I wouldn't buy it," McPherson says. She likes to buy American, because she thinks "made in the USA" makes a product better and safer, and also because she wants to support the U.S. economy.

It seems that Trader Joe's is hearing directly from consumers who feel the same way. Customer concern about Trader Joe's selling fresh garlic from China prompted the chain to announce that it would phase out "single ingredient" foods from China early this year. Processed foods that contain ingredients from China would still be sold, presumably.

• [USA Today] Trader Joe's to exclude some food imports from China

(2-11-08) By April 1, Trader Joe's will phase out single-ingredient Chinese imports such as garlic, frozen organic spinach, ginger and edamame, a green soybean, says spokeswoman Alison Mochizuki. The ban doesn't include products with ingredients from China, a leading source of vitamins and minerals used in many processed foods.

With 285 stores in 23 states, Trader Joe's is known for good prices on a wide selection of exotic items, from Australian licorice to Indian pilaf. Trader Joe's says the products it bought from China were safe. But "our customers have voiced their concerns about products from this region, and we have listened," Mochizuki said.

Federal regulators last year warned about contaminated Chinese pet food ingredients, fish containing antibiotics not allowed in human food, and toothpaste laced with a chemical used in antifreeze.

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And let's not forget, I got the Health Care survey, which the AFL-CIO has been asking people to take, reminded to me again via the NYC Central Labor Council's E-Mail. So heres a reminder:

Take the AFL-CIO Health Care for America Survey

Make your voice heard on health care
Take the 2008 Health Care for America Survey today.

In solidarity,

Working Families e-Activist Network, AFL-CIO

More Info:
Tell Us Your Health Care Story at AFL-CIO WebBlog

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This is also some noteworthy news.

• [Guardian.co.uk] British union plans merger with American steelworkers

(2-11-08) Two of the largest British and American unions are hoping to announce an agreement this summer to create a transatlantic super-union capable of defending workers' rights in the globalised marketplace.

Unite, which has about two million members, and the United Steelworkers union (USW), which represents about a million members in the US, Canada and the Caribbean, see the creation of an international union presence as the key to meeting the challenges posed by the onward march of globalisation.

Unite's joint general secretary, Derek Simpson, said: "Unions which are organised nationally are not in a position to successfully challenge multinational companies over employment terms. There are some things over which you have no control or influence at all and many where you have so little it amounts to nothing." Simpson argues that, by contrast, multinational companies can use the threat of relocating to other countries to make their influence felt.

• [Bloomberg] Ford May Cut 9,000 More U.S. Plant Jobs, Person Says (Update4)

(2-11-08) The cuts would be in addition to the 33,600 union workers who left through buyouts and early retirements in 2006 and 2007, when Ford lost a combined $15.3 billion. Further reductions may help Ford restore profit by speeding the hiring of new workers who would be paid about half as much as current employees.

Can't say I didn't see that one coming, I tried to warn you guys, now your stuck with a POS contract and the entire US auto industry, which by the way isn't securely staying on American soil (no wording in the contract), is a $19 an hour job.

• [UnionReview by me] UAW: Some Reasons for GM Workers to Vote NO!

(9-29-07) They said (UAW) the strike was for job security , that management (GM) wouldn't meet them at all in negotiations, what they came back with doesn't address job security, only an empty promise that the company (GM) would try to invest in US manufacturing, This contract from an outsiders point of view is a disgrace , it takes away wage increases under the terms of "bonuses" instead of raises, it gives a union that seems more focused to organize outside of its natural boundaries , writers , student workers, etc. complete control of all welfare monies of its GM membership. And lastly it divides the entire group of GM workers into two separate tiers, who obviously will not be able to ever fight as a unified body ever again.

Nobody listens anymore.

Online Labor Activism Works, 3 global victories thanks to people who helped support Eric Lee's Labourstart E-Activist campaign's

Eric Lee's Labourstart is the world premiere news source for international Labor headlines, his news feeds are found on news, labor and social injustice sites around the globe. Just adding a pertinent link to Labourstart helps spread information, information which is usually ignored by the main stream media. After reading some global campaigns, you can see how much we have in common with the struggling working man around globe. Nowadays when all the corporations are going with the lowest bidders in the cheapest nations, it's even more important that we all get involved in making it better for those people. Think of it as a hand up which can help ourselves too, eventually the price to relocate will be nullified if the demand by the workforce makes steady gains.

Eric also makes it his personal business to get us involved in the global movement by sending out correspondence explaining the situations and asking us to take further action via E-Activist e-mail campaigns and by getting the word out. I took one of his campaigns to heart, the Russian Ford strike. The greatest strike in Russia since the collapse of the Soviet Union. Through the ups and downs of their picket, Labourstart followed the story, with some very reminiscent factors such as an anti-union police force and government getting involved. Ford has since met the majority of the workers demands. This also comes on the heals of another win from Eric, getting Blackadder, the Union Organizer back onto Facebook. You can and should join Eric's e-mail list. We do make a difference.

So without further ado, heres the E-mail I opened today:

In the last few weeks we've asked for your backing for online campaigns in support of a jailed activist in Bangladesh, striking workers in Russia, and baristas in a Tel Aviv cafe. You responded magnificently, and today I want to report on three bits of good news.

Mehedi Hasan, the workers rights activist in Bangladesh, was released from detention on Sunday afternoon. Thanks to the 4,000 of you who sent messages and spread the word. Bangladesh remains a concern for all of us, and you can continue to follow these issues on the website of Labour Behind the Label and on LabourStart's Bangladesh news page.

And as we reported earlier, your generous donations to the striking Ford workers in Russia have produced some concrete results -- today a majority of workers at the plant voted to accept the agreement on a pay increase and additional benefits which was reached following the historic 20-day strike, the longest-ever in recent Russian history.

The lowest paid workers are getting a 21 percent increase, and on average the factory workers will earn US $1,030 per month. According to reports we're getting from Russia, "the conflict is over with a great victory of workers, whose courage and international solidarity made the company engage in serious negotiations, leading to the setting up of new pay standards for the whole booming Russian auto industry."

We recently asked for your support for the IUF's global online campaign backing striking workers at the Coffee Bean cafe in Israel. According to reports in the media today, the trade union federation (Histadrut) and management have agreed to end the two-week strike and begin negotiations.

Three campaigns - three victories. This has been a good week. Thank you!

Eric Lee

No, Thank You, Eric Lee, you are an inspiration to us all.

Russia: Victory - Ford agrees to 30% raise, strike ends temporarily

I have been following this story for a few weeks now at UnionReview and have participated in Labourstart's ActNow E-mail campaign. The workers fought tremendous odds against a company who used the police as security for strike-breakers and had the authorities ban picketing altogether. The workers after Ford agreed to a 30% increase in wage, have returned, possibly temporarily, and have begun bargaining on their February contract

From: UnionReview 12/10

In the midst of a 3 week strike for wage increase at a ST. Petersburg Ford plant, Russian authorities have banned picketing, after the company hired police to escort strikebreakers, according to a Ford spokesman enough of the 2000+ workers have returned to restart the second of 3 shifts it seems that Ford will not meet it's production of 300 Focus model cars per day. Currently a worker in the Ford plant makes about $880 USD a month. The Ford pickets represent the strongest union action in Russia since the collapse of the Soviet Union. Having the authorities stop their pickets the workers need our help even more.

Big props to Eric Lee and Labourstarts corespondents for keeping us informed, and to the people that got involved and sent e-mails or helped these workers any way they could. We do make a difference.

More Info:
http://en.rian.ru
Moscow Times

At UnionReview:
Russia: Ford workers need your help
Russia: Ford workers continue strike while authorities ban pickets