State of the Union September 8, 2011

Sept. 6, 2011 online at www.uawlocal2250.com


Open House Update: In order to give employees a chance to participate in some of the activities being offered at the Open House, daily team meetings are being cancelled through Thursday, Sept. 15 and 40 minutes will be added onto the 8 am break that day to give you an hour (8-9 am) to do the ride and drive and check out the various displays. To insure that everyone gets an equal chance to drive a vehicle, the following will be the schedule for the various departments to participate: 8-8:20 – Chassis, Final and Quality; 8:20-8:40 – Body, Paint and Stamping; 8:40-9:00 – Trim and Material (skilled trades will go with the department they are assigned to, or in the first group, whichever applies). There should be 8 opportunities to drive a Chevy Volt in the 20 minute time period so it is being suggested that the department groupings identify who is interested in driving one and draw 8 names from those people. Otherwise it will be first come, first served. There will be a total of 16 vehicles from each brand available to drive on a course set up in lot 4. Also, here is the schedule for parking lot closures next week:
o 9/12/11 through 9/14/11--Lots 1, 2, and 3 - Employee Parking (no changes)
o Monday, 9/12/11, following production, Parking Lot 4 & 5 to be closed. (Lot 4 is immediately to the west or right of the main entrance) Barricades will be placed on roadway blocking lots 4 & 5. (Event set up) All traffic for lot 6 & 7 to enter/exit through Gate 4 (Chassis gate).
o Tuesday, 9/13/11, All Day, Parking Lot 4 & 5 to be closed. Barricades will be blocking roadway blocking lots 4 & 5. (Event set up) All traffic for lot 6 & 7 to enter/exit through Gate 4 (Chassis gate).
o Wednesday, 9/14/11, Parking Lot 4, 5, 6, and South end of Lot 7 closed for event. Parking for employees in Lot #7 north end (closest to Hwy A). All employee traffic to enter/exit through Gate 4 (Chassis gate).

Here is this week’s build information: 264 slider doors; 101 E-26 vans; 51 15-pass vans; 67 brake deck spare tire; 100 diesels; 344 cutaways; 229 Enterprise cargo vans; 176 Onstar; 193 exports; 128 r/h door delete; 90 YF7; 87% white vans

The Women’s Committee Golf tournament for this Saturday is still in need of teams. If you had planned on playing contact Becky Schieffer, Karen Jones or any other committee member. You can pay your entry fee the day of the tournament. There is a shotgun start at 1:30 and the fee is $70 per person/$210 per team.

From Bloomberg: The United Auto Workers, bargaining a new contract for U.S. automakers, is turning to General Motors Co. (GM) to set the pattern for wages and benefits for the U.S. industry, said three people familiar with the discussions. UAW bargainers are seeking a large signing bonus and new work in U.S. factories in exchange for not increasing fixed labor costs at GM, Ford Motor Co. (F) and Chrysler Group LLC, said one of the people, who asked not to be identified as revealing internal discussions. Negotiations at GM are farthest along and will continue through the weekend, the people said. Detroit-based GM is offering buyouts in hopes that senior workers retire, making room for new hires who are paid half as much, said two people familiar with the proposal. “GM makes the most sense as the lead company because it remains the largest, it has shown renewed health and a willingness to work with the UAW,” said Harley Shaiken, a labor professor at the University of California at Berkeley. “GM is the company that is demonstrating that they want to get a deal.” Michele Martin, a spokeswoman for the UAW, denied that the union had selected GM. “That’s not accurate,” she said last night, declining to comment further. GM’s proposed buyouts are aimed at paring the ranks of senior employees and skilled-trades workers, who receive the highest pay, said the people familiar with the offer. New workers, even with a higher hourly rate than $14, would lower overall labor costs for the automakers, the people said. With a path to lower labor costs, the companies are willing to put more work in U.S. plants, rather than in low-wage countries such as Mexico, the people said.

From the Detroit Free Press: UAW President Bob King was cautious today about the status of discussions with the DetroitThree. “I would not describe it that way,” King said when asked if discussions for a new national contract are ahead of schedule. “I would just say they are going well. You don’t have a deal until the whole deal is done,” King said in an interview today on Spotlight on the News, a WXYZ-TV Channel 7 news program. Despite his caution, King said he is “really upbeat about the autotalks.” “I think the discussions that are going on are in-depth and there is an understanding of each other’s issues,” King said. The UAW leader also said U.S. President Barack Obama has the “full support” of the UAW’s leadership despite a lackluster economy and a national unemployment rate that stands at 9.1%. “He saved our jobs,” King said in reference to federal aid to GM and Chrysler in 2009. “Our members know there would not be an American auto industry today without Obama’s leadership.”