[Shotimes] Unions etc

[Bill Strobel]

I do not blame the unions for asking for everything they want and negotiating favorable contracts.  I blame management for giving it to them and then coming back 20+ years later and saying the union is bankrupting the company.  Well duh you gave it to them.  These guys are getting paid big bucks to manage the company. If someone did not do a cost analysis on what the union contracts would cost down the road (legacy costs, jobs bank etc) then shame on them.  If they did do the analysis but ignored it due to short sightedness then shame on them.  Fact labor builds, management runs the company.  It wasn't the union that made the deal with Fiat etc etc.  If the company is going down the tubes it is managements responsibility pure and simple.  Even build quality is managements responsibility.  As far as the car industry goes, there were more cars built in 2005 than any other year in history.  It is not a dead industry.  What is changing is market share and market influence.  The Big 3 do
 not command and are losing market share at home to the Japanese.  The most influential car market is still the US but that will change to when the Chinese and India come on line.  US Big 3 management sold out their companies long term health for short term labor bliss.  The bill is due.  Unions; right now with a global economy US union labor is getting paid too much for what they do, and Mexican and off shore emerging labor nations are being paid too little for what they do.  The Mexicans and the Koreans are striking and asking and receiving more.  As they do more manufacturing is moving to China and India (cheaper labor) but this cycle can not continue forever.  Eventually the labor market will level and US workers will make less but the emerging nations will make more but they will all make about the same.  Then the difference will be shipping costs and manufacturing will return closer to home because the savings will be in the shipping instead of the labor.  My thoughts.      
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