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Re: Should our governments help out the auto industry?
bridgman #250081 03/04/09 01:11 AM
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I worked in the tooling industry for approx 20 yrs(until 2 yrs ago) building/machining assembly lines for the "Big Three" as well as most of the other manufacturers with plants in N. America. To put things in some kind of perspective, us guys who did 5000 hr Tool & Die/Machining apprentices and invested thousands ($30,000+ for me) in tools and had to work to tolerances of as little as .0001 (about 1/30 the hair on your back!! lol) were making less than the guy who pressed the "start" button on the assembly line. I'm not trying to press anyones "start" button here, nor am I trying to 'toot' my own horn....but there's a lack of perspective here. I'm going to stop here, because I'll probably step on some toes....but the idea of people who have been making good $$ (both management and union wkrs) asking the guy in the factory across the road, working for $14-15 hr making widgets to bail them out is wrong on so many levels.


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Re: Should our governments help out the auto industry?
bridgman #250083 03/04/09 01:25 AM
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I think this quote sums up my thoughts on the bailouts

“There is nothing so disastrous as a rational investment policy in an irrational world” (John Maynard Keynes)

I agree with the bailout and see it as a wise economic policy, however this economic "bailout" has been rushed and I am not confident that the people responsible for spending this money will make the correct decisions especially for the long run. There needs to be accountability and I do not see that yet. I do not like seeing the people resposnible for these failed business practices given money to try to turn things around.








I’m armed and I’m drinking. You don’t want to listen to advice from me, amigo.

-Max Payne
Re: Should our governments help out the auto industry?
BlueJays1 #250125 03/04/09 06:51 AM
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No for the bailout on the auto industry.

The economy will eventually bounce back...stocks are a bargain right now!

People buy new cars when the money is flowing and the economy is doing well, they won't when the economy is crap...the beater car they have right now will be fine for a while. This could be said about many other entertainment industries...



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Re: Should our governments help out the auto industry?
Adrian #250134 03/04/09 09:07 AM
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 Originally Posted By: Adrian
(both management and union wkrs)
CAW/UAW aren't the enemy. They're the ones trying to insure there's still a middle class.

Everyone wants to make big money and spend small money, and they're quick to "roll over" on the next guy - he should make less, I should make more.

Bren R.

Re: Should our governments help out the auto industry?
BrenR #250139 03/04/09 12:24 PM
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I tend to agree. Unions do more than increase wages for their members, although that is probably their main fuction. They also ensure proper working conditions and give the little guy a voice.

If you blame the union, you essentially blame the entire work force. And I just can't blame someone who is asking for more money, better benefits, imporved working conditions, etc.

However what I can't get around is CEO's that run a company into the ground due to bad decissions, and then walk away with more money than most of us make in multiple lifetimes.

paul


paul

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Re: Should our governments help out the auto industry?
Worfzara #250140 03/04/09 12:31 PM
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And another thing, how come I can't get no Tang 'round here?


With great power comes Awesome irresponsibility.
Re: Should our governments help out the auto industry?
BrenR #250149 03/04/09 01:43 PM
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 Originally Posted By: BrenR
CAW/UAW aren't the enemy. They're the ones trying to insure there's still a middle class.


Bren R.
You have to understand that over the last five years, in Ontario, many companies have gone under because companies like GM, were overpaying their own then asking their suppliers and assembly line builders to keep giving them better deals. I have seen this happen over and over again. You can't be paying millions to CEOs and union workers then expect your suppliers and builders to take less to make up for it....and now ask taxpayers to bail you out on top of that. No company should be asking for a penny until THEY do what THEY can to save their companies first...that means paycuts, no bonuses ect.


Half of communication is listening. You can't listen with your mouth.
Re: Should our governments help out the auto industry?
Adrian #250151 03/04/09 02:23 PM
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Last year there were more cars and trucks made in Ontario than in Michigan. The main reason for this is healthcare costs. In the US the automotive companies pay approx. $1500 per vehicle towards healthcare. This is because the US doesn’t have a national healthcare plan. In Canada it’s $300 per vehicle because we do have a national healthcare plan. It is important to note the Canadian healthcare plan is subsidized by it’s taxpayers.

My view is that if it’s the government’s responsibility to help/serve/protect its people, then it must provide no cost healthcare similar to what we have here in Canada (diff. topic and lets not digress here). This is one of the things that have been killing Ford, GM and Chrysler in the US. Take the number of cars that have been made in the US, times it by $1200 ($1500 - $300). And you can see how much the US taxpayer has been saving, relative to the Canadian taxpayer. Isn’t it time for the US taxpayer to anti up and pay their share? It should never be a company’s responsibility to pay for healthcare, that is the role of government.

Remember, Toyota and Honda don’t get hit nearly has hard here, because they have only been building cars in North America for around 20 years. They don’t have any retirees yet. But that won’t last forever.


paul

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Re: Should our governments help out the auto industry?
Adrian #250152 03/04/09 02:30 PM
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The average UAW worker's pay is roughly $28/hour. If you factor in the healthcare and pension, the figure rises to more than $70/hour. But I'll be realistic and just stick with take-home pay. Assuming a 40 hour workweek, 52 weeks/year = $58,240 per year. That's according to GM itself, as of 2/12/08.

The average public grade-school teacher's salary is $51,009/year, according to http://www.aft.org/salary/. Teachers have pensions too, but I won't consider that because I didn't consider that with the UAW figures.

I'm sorry, but I don't understand why people who stand around and punch rivets into metal, screw on a door, or bolt on a tire all day, everyday, should make more money than those who are charged with educating our society.


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Re: Should our governments help out the auto indus
PeterChenoweth #250153 03/04/09 02:46 PM
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 Originally Posted By: PeterChenoweth
I'm sorry, but I don't understand why people who stand around and punch rivets into metal, screw on a door, or bolt on a tire all day, everyday, should make more money than those who are charged with educating our society.

Agreed. If I could have made the same money as a teacher, I would have gladly foregone medicine.

As a mild tangent, if you really want to get angry, consider how much we pay our entertainers and athletes. I heard on the radio the other day that the average NBA player's salary is $5 million a year. Just an average, bench-riding athlete. Any way the second-string forward on your local team is worth 100 teachers? That really chaps my a$$.


Bears, beets, Battlestar Galactica.
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