Obama saves UAW again, screws shareholders
This is dumb as hell. Has the President considered that retirement accounts, everyday working stiffs, and pretty much everyone has a hat in the stock game, and millions still have Chrysler? Why give favorable treatment to UAW? Here’s what I mean:
The Treasury has an agreement in principle with the United Automobile Workers union, whose members’ pensions and retiree health care benefits would be protected as a condition of the bankruptcy filing, said these people, who asked for anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the case.
The pensions and retiree benefits are the crux of the whole problem, Barack. You are not solving much of anything. Fiat will merely inherit this albatross and be forced under eventually as well, unless they spike Chrysler, which kills a real American company and real American jobs. (By the way, where’s all the outrage over outsourcing the company to Italy?) Its why the first bailout didn’t work, and any future bailouts won’t work. Its like building a new bedroom onto a burning house because the old bedroom is engulfed in flames. The flames are coming eventually. (Sidenote: whoever is leaking these stories needs to be jailed. Why is this such a problem?)
So, bankruptcy is going to happen, but Obama changed the rules so the union can keep on murdering business. What a country. Why, do you think, he has shielded the UAW so? Oh, I bet its the billions of dollars they’ve spent to elect Democrats, who are now willingly injuring a business to keep a body that bankrolls them in power. Honestly, this always was a union bailout. Its clear its not about the companies or the shareholders.
The ultimate losers here are the shareholders, of course. 22 cents on the dollar is a catastrophe for any person/entity holding the bag. Real people are going to get smoked by this deal, but its okay guys, the unions are fine. Once more, real people are getting a falconpunch from the administration that is changing the way America works, for worse or for way worse.
Chris said,
April 23, 2009 at 9:40 pm
Yes! Pay workers less for the good of the company! Screw the people who actually do the work! You guys on the far side really have a funny way of looking at things.
Anyway, it’s quite noble of you to give up your benefits and retirement to put your money (and future, as it were) where your mouth is. After all, you wouldn’t want to be a hypocrite or anything. Well done.
regulusred said,
April 24, 2009 at 12:47 pm
You cannot pay the people so much that the company goes under. Then nobody has a job, and everybody loses. That’s the angle I see these things from.
I don’t have a retirement package, as I am 25 years old. I do, however, have my own 401k and stock portfolio which is relatively pitiful, but a start on my future. I have little disposable income, but I’m already making headway on my retired future. I would say my money is right in the vicinity of where my mouth is.
This could be solved quite easily if Obama hadn’t chained himself to the UAW. Simply change GE and Chrysler policy such that retirement benefits phase out, starting 10 years from now, and are completely gone in 20. Begin mandatory 401k deposits and use a 100% corporate match from GE as a sign of good faith. Furthermore, slash health coverage of entire families for employees according to the same phasing procedure. Crisis solved, business preserved. Frankly, the workers stand to make more money once these anchors are at long last cut from the ship.