Introduction | 50-year return period
a 50-year largest auto workers strike, and finally the dust settles, but what won what lose, it seems difficult to determine .
55 percentage favor! On Friday at four o’clock, General Motors throughout the United States 55 the union organization (full name is the United States automotive, aerospace international Federation of workers and tools, referred to as UAW) the voting results were announced, declaring the strike officially ended after six weeks, nearly 48,000 workers gradually began to return to work from the next day. This is the longest in 50 years of auto industry strike, second only to 1970’s 67-day-old strike, the strike is the last 12 years, but lasted just two days.
car poly monarch to collect ten questions, this event will go down in history, do a question and answer review.
1. Why did the workers go on strike?
September 19, 2019, UAW strike statement on its official website, a list of five demands:
▎Fair Wages reasonable salary ▎Affordable healthcare affordable health insurance ▎Our Share of profits profit sharing ▎Job Security employment Security ▎A Defined Path to Permanent Seniority for Temps temporary workers to positive channel
facilitate better understanding, some vehicles polyethylene Jun background.
▎ on pay levels
UAW GM plant currently hourly wages are starting salary of $ 17, with the length of service increased year by year, capped at $ 29.94, after eight years, equivalent to the highest monthly salary of about $ 5000 (excluding overtime pay). In contrast, specialTesla in California factory workers hourly wage ranges from $ 16- $ 47, depending on the type of work, seniority, job skills requirements.
In addition to wages, the company usually have to pay health insurance, life insurance, pensions, paid holidays for employees, taken together, tend to be over the salary itself, but also a lot of expenses. There are agencies to calculate the labor cost GM union workers up to $ 63 per hour, not only higher than in the United States and repairer of foreign companies such as Toyota, Honda and Volkswagen ($ 50), also higher than the city rivals Ford Motor ($ 61) and Fick FCA ( 60 $).
▎ Medicare
In the United States, do not enjoy the government’s universal health insurance in the working-class post (only for the elderly and people with special needs), rely on employer-provided health insurance. Employers bear most of the costs, the average employee share rate between 18-27 percentage. General Motors union workers only 3 percentage needs burden, is the envy of all-American good benefits. After
▎ profit-sharing
2009 financial crisis, Detroit’s Big Three auto companies to traditional wage adjustments, changes to bonuses based on profitability, according to the US market pre-tax profit, earnings per formula is $ 1 billion, employees you can get $ 1,000 up to $ 12,000. Alone, UAW GM employees received a total of $ 80,050 over the past nine years, roughly equivalent to two months salary can earn more each year.
▎ job security
due to the decline in car sales, GM last November decided to close four factories in the United States, about 3,300 UAW employees affected, including the production of the Cruze sedan, Ohio Lordstrom, this end, Trump tweeted a special pressure on GM.
▎ temporary workers
GM employs about more than 3,100 full-time and part-time temporary workers, accounting for about 7 percent of the total number. They do the same job with regular workers, but low pay, poor benefits: no paid leave, but no money, lack of effective positive channels.
[Soundtrack] “When General Motors most need us, with whom we stand together. now, we are united in, and work together to support our members and their families, as well as our work and lifeLive community. quot; – Terry Dittes vice president of UAW
2, the purpose of the strike reached yet?
To answer this question, we look at the agreement reached with the details.
▎ salary adjustments in
for four years, two years the percentage of salary were up 3, two additional one-time payment 4 percent compensation. So doing, the highest salary in the fourth year of the contract period rose to $ 32.32 per hour. Meanwhile, the original eight years salary ceiling, changed four years, half the time.
▎ health insurance
benefits remain unchanged, means that workers at no additional cost. GM increased proportion own originally proposed scheme to 15 percent is rejected.
▎ bonus program
remains the same, or every $ 1 billion in pretax profit sharing $ 1,000, but the elimination of the cap, no limit. At the same time, we are providing performance awards of $ 1000 per person per year. Workers can get signature signing bonus from the initial commitment of $ 8000, it increased to $ 11,000 full-time temporary workers also have $ 4500.
▎ job security
original plans to close four factories, changed only off three, retaining the production Volt’s Detroit Hamtramck plant, and committed $ 3 billion transformation of production lines, the production of electric pickups, is expected to provide 2250 work position.
▎ temporary workers
early next year, three years of full-time temporary work can be regularized, at the same time, temporary wages also improved. For example, worked for one year, you can get paid week off. In the future the use of temporary workers, the union will have a greater voice.
3. Who is the winner?
Integrated media analysis, the following is a list of winners:
▎ Detroit Hamtramck plant
A year later, pulled back from the dead line, experienced a roller coaster like work experienceWho can grow a breath.
▎ older workers to be closed three other factories of the plant
in line with the retirement age or length of service requirements, can take an enormous amount of severance pay: the average worker up to $ 75,000, $ 85,000 skilled workers.
▎ Mexico
is not within the coverage of the contract, which means no production schedule adjustment, work as usual.
▎ full-time temporary workers
channels
finally opened to positive.
▎ new workers
to accelerate the pace of salary increases, greatly reducing the time to get the maximum salary, do not boil as before eight years.
▎ older workers approaching retirement age
If the applicant retired at the end of this year, then early next year, obtain a one-time $ 60,000 subsidy.
4, win or lose there, who are the losers?
▎ Trump
Ohio Lordstown plant is named to protect him, but the contract handed down this plant is scheduled to shut down the fate of sale. Although GM said that it would create a new battery plant near, but the scale and number of employment greatly reduced. In addition, the president has repeatedly called on the General Motors factory moved back to the United States from Mexico or China, but apparently did not see any contract-related programs. Just do not know the fate of this plant, how much of a negative impact on his ballot.
▎FCA and Ford Motor
as a union under the direction of the main attack, the two cars is difficult to make such a generous check. GM contract obviously to put pressure on the two companies, for various reasons, they may not have GM big concessions, trade unions and higher expectations can imagine the difficulty of the negotiations (the latest news, Ford has reached a tentative agreement, union The next goal is FCA).
▎ skilled workers
While the overall turnout was 55 percentage, but seen separately, skilled workers (skilled trades worker) generally voted against it. This part of the staff in the trade unions are a minority, but need more training, partial or college. They obviously demands were not met.
[Soundtrack] “WeWhat happened could happen to anyone else, I’m sure General Motors will shut down the plant of underemployment in the United States, because the contract is not limited to this one. “- Tim O’Hara, Lordstown Local 1112 union president
5, how to evaluate GM’s gains and losses
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At first glance, a common victory that:
▎ closed as scheduled severe shortage of three factory operating rate .▎ Mexico business to continue to advance over the past five years, General Motors Mexico dramatically expand the business, making low wages sources advantage .▎ strengthen GM’s overall competitiveness, avoiding the highly skilled, strong labor productivity loss, while factory employment terms, still leaves a lot of flexibility
[Soundtrack] quot;. we (and the UAW reached) a new labor agreement will help maintain our competitiveness and maintain operational flexibility, enabling us to continue to improve the quality and productivity remain focused on strengthening our core business, leading the field of personal mobility in the future. “- mary Barra, GM chairman, CEO
On the other hand, many people think this is a very expensive contract, GM has paid a considerable cost. University of Michigan Ross School of Business professor Erik Gordon do not agree, General Motors in this contract will be won. He said that has always been close three plants planned. General Motors on the original cost structure higher than the average cost structure of the new contract will be even greater. The next four years, the possibility of significant sales decline of economic downturn, a lot of promises in the contract are fixed costs, the company will be great pressure.
However, GM executives do not agree, CFO Dhivya Suryadevara that although the cost of a large contract, the company has the ability to decline to around 11 million in the market, you can still profit.
“We have a production layout around North America, according to industry adjusted to maintain the level of change in the workforceThe ability to protect the balance sheet, without increasing obligations to retirees or defined benefit pension obligations. “-? GM CFO Dhivya Suryadevara
6, what is the economic impact of the strike
October 29 day, General Motors announced a strike direct loss of data, third-quarter loss of 10 million (US $ 500 million per week), by the end, the cumulative loss of up to $ 3.8 billion, far higher than outside estimates due to strike the vehicle production caused by the loss of 300,000, some of the losses can be offset by overtime, but already at full capacity for some products, such as pickups and SUV, the loss is permanent.
strike continues every day, the economic impact throughout the automotive supply chain, resulting in the number of workers being laid off in terms of thousands. also spread to Mexico and Canada plant closures, thousands of people unable to work. Michigan Dover Flint City, there are at least 1,200 truckers and suppliers of production employees lost their jobs because of the strike, including hundreds of seats suppliers from Lear Corporation.
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strike and union members also make hundreds of millions of US Dues, wages and loss of income, as well as various government tax revenues. The striking workers can only rely on subsidies of $ 250 to make up for the trade union weekly, and later rose to $ 275, is inadequate.
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7, new product development and the Chinese market affect it?
is very limited, because technicians are not union members, all development work, are step by step carried out, including new products for the Chinese market.
8, is said to trade unions opposed to electric cars?
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GM’s electric transformation of attitude, which is also for the future UAW representationWorry, because the characteristics of the electric vehicle determines the related decline in employment, and because the electric car market has not really taken shape, unions fear have enough work, so I hope GM multi-fuel vehicle layout.
To this end, GM CEO Mary Barra clear that the future is still a long way to go zero emissions.
“Even if you look at the forecast …… 2030 was 15%, or 20% of the electric car?” Barra response. “This means that most vehicles will continue to be an internal combustion engine.”
Bala said, these traditional vehicles will still need a lot of factories and workers. She said GM is for future production efforts, which will benefit employees and with the changes to the travel requirements of the market to provide flexibility for the company.
Bala said:. “We are committed to manufacturing in the United States,” she said, GM foresees tremendous opportunity to manufacture electric vehicles. “This is part of the discussion with the UAW.”
As part of this contract, GM and the UAW will set up a special committee to learn about new technology trends, and determine the technical requirements of the new workers, and to ensure adequate training.
9, GM sales affect it?
Because GM reported sales data by quarter, final sales results early next year will not be known, but at least a two-week strike in September, GM’s sales does not seem to be significantly affected, it is not yet clear.
In fact, General Motors rainy day, a few months before the strike began, has been arranged in advance to work overtime to produce a lot higher than normal demand for vehicles, ready for a lot of inventory, so when the strike began 80 reserves around day, much higher than the normal level of 60 days, sufficient to meet the user’s requirements. As the strike enters third week later, Began to appear some popular models choice is relatively small problems, while working hard to repair parts due to the strike, but also greatly affected the normal vehicle maintenance services.
strike also had a negative impact on potential customers, the data analysis has found that GM customers online search traffic, there is a significant decline after the strike began.
10 for strikes, how do you see?
strikes different opinions, but one thing is clear: UAW have real power, and willing and able to use its power.
“From a perspective, the use of a huge union bargaining power serve the interests of the workers, and not just to please those who pay the highest level of workers. People often criticize trade unions greedy bastards Historically, this statement has some truth in this round, UAW make every effort to improve the plight of the lower classes of all kinds:… temporary workers, hiring new staff and probation workers, “Cornell University Professor Harry Katz study labor relations are summarized.
He added: “It is very important that it shows that unions and internal staff remains united
from. Historically, over the past 20 years, the phenomenon of the US strike entered a period of gentle, more of a local small-scale strike, but the nationwide strike, perhaps a new generation of labor relations have entered a turbulent period ?