Category Archives: labor issues

Obama Administration Submits Controversial FTAs to Congress. Largest Loss of Jobs since NAFTA Coming?

The AFL-CIO said the “The Korea agreement is the largest offshoring deal of its kind since NAFTA. If enacted, it likely will displace 159,000 U.S. jobs, mostly in manufacturing. And its glaring loopholes would allow unscrupulous businesses to import illegally labeled goods from China and possibly even from sweatshops in North Korea—potentially without any tariffs at all.” Continue reading

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UAW has Deal at Ford Pending Local Approvals. 5750 Jobs Added or Retained During Contract. Shared Prosperity Claimed

The tentative agreement is based of Ford’s promise to add another 5,750 new jobs and invest what’s said to be $16 billion to produce new models and upgraded vehicles and components by 2015, of which, $6.3 billion will be invested directly into retooling and upgrading plants. As is the current management practice in the ailing U.S. economy, the jobs claim includes so called retained jobs, as well as some new ones. All of this is contingent upon contract approval by local union members. Continue reading

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S&P Raises General Motors to Highest Junk Grade – BB+

The upgrade came one day after the GM’s 49,500 UAW employees ratified a new four-year contract that will not raise GM’s labor costs, and will provide bonuses based on profitability instead of automatic pay raises. GM at this time appears to have the lowest labor costs among the Detroit Three since both Ford Motor and Chrysler UAW contracts are unresolved. It’s ironic that it took a Democratic President to curb the union – in essence breaking it – under the forced bankruptcy reorganization of GM, which included a no strike clause. Continue reading

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Labor Demand Down Again, Continuing Unemployment Trend

nline advertised vacancies were down 43,500 in September to 3,947,100, according a Conference Board study released today. The September drop follows a decline of 164,000 in August and a decrease of 217,000 in July. The Supply/Demand ratio stands at 3.50, meaning there were 3.5 unemployed for every online advertised vacancy in August, the latest monthly data available for unemployment. Nationally, there are 10 million more people officially unemployed (9.98 million) than advertised vacancies under the “no jobs” Obama Administration. Continue reading

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Auto Industry Reputation Shows Big Gains as Airlines, oh, Crash

The latest Harris Poll that measures how the public perceives twenty-two of the nation’s largest industries shows huge shifts during the last two years. The biggest changes since 2009, when the survey was last conducted, are a huge improvement in the auto industry reputation as measured by the number of people who think that the auto industry is doing a good job of serving consumers, while there is also a “very large increase” in those who think the airline industry is doing a bad job. Continue reading

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Ford UAW is Next Labor Contract Fight. Strike Possible?

If the GM UAW contract sets the pattern, as it has in the past, a combination of job creation and increased pay for new union hires (the shrinking UAW desperately needs the revenues) will occur and signing bonuses will be given to existing workers under a new Ford UAW deal. Continue reading

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GM UAW Contract Offers Profit Sharing, Some New Jobs

A new four-year labor contract that will be voted on by GM’s UAW workers this week and next includes modest increases in wages for new hires over four years – but not veterans – and the protection or creation of more than 6,000 plant jobs in the U.S. at GM and its component suppliers. Long time employees will be compensated going forward largely with profit-sharing based on GM’s results in North America. Continue reading

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UAW Reaches Agreement with GM. Members Vote This Week

The real contract to watch is the now expired and unresolved one at Ford Motor where the UAW can strike, since Ford did not except bailout funds and hence the requisite no strike provision for a bailout, although Ford did accept billions in other taxpayer subsidies and handouts during the beginning years of the Obama Administration. Continue reading

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Unemployment Unchanged as Zero U.S. Jobs Created in August Amid Political Posturing, Inaction, Policy Failures

While private companies add 17,000 jobs in August, those meager gains were cancelled by the loss of 17,000 government jobs in August, meaning the unemployment crisis continued. Zero, zilch, nil, no jobs were created during another month of inaction, which saw the U.S, Congress take an extended paid vacation as the U.S. economy limped along with an official – and hugely understated – unemployment rate of 9.1 %, according to data released today by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. This devastating unemployment rate has shown no change since last April. Continue reading

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4,547 Worker fatalities in 2010 About Same as 2009 – 12 a Day

Because of the way data are gathered it is difficult to directly tally automaker fatalities. In Michigan, Indiana and Ohio, all heavily dependent on the auto industry, more than 350 workers died in manufacturing related positions; motor vehicle or parts dealers were involved in 49 fatalities across the U.S. And this doesn’t include trucking, warehousing or other transportation injuries, which could be auto related. Continue reading

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EU-South Korea Free Trade Agreement Favors Koreans

Under current market conditions, this waiver will not balance the current €10.7 billion trade deficit in automobiles, according to the respected consultancy Frost & Sullivan. Continue reading

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Ford to Build $1 Billion Assembly and Engine Plants in India

India is projected to become the world’s third largest light vehicle market by the end of the decade behind China and the U.S. Continue reading

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U.S. Unemployment Rises Again in June to an Official 9.2%

This means that more than 14 million Americans are unemployed, with at least another 10 million underemployed. The average length unemployment is now the highest on record. The Administration and its cabinet appointees as well as Republicans were quick to attempt damage control. Continue reading

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Ford of Europe CEO Stephen O’Dell Calls for a Comprehensive Industrial Policy and Rejection of Korean FTA

Odell also criticized a proposed Korean trade agreement, which in a different form is also controversial in the U.S. However, Ford in the U.S. supports a pending Korean FTA, which is opposed by all major U.S. unions except for the United Autoworkers. A Ford spokesperson was unable to explain the disparity in the conflicting positions. Continue reading

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Chrysler Recalls More than 11,000 Vehicles for Missing Rivet

It turns out new employees on the second shift reintroduced into the assembly process steering columns that had previously been rejected as defective. The supplier was not specified in the required NHTSA safety defect filing. Continue reading

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