June 25, 2013 online at www.uawlocal2250.com
The Chaplaincy Committee will be having a meeting Wednesday, June 26 at 3:30 pm at the Chassis Chapel at column C-42. As always, anyone who is interested in attending and being a member of the Chaplaincy Committee is welcome!
The Veterans Committee is having a get together lunch at Stefaninas in Wentzville Friday, July 19 from 12:30 – 3:00 pm. All are welcome – veterans and non-veterans. You can buy off the menu.
From the Benefits Department: Beginning July 1, the new administrator for outpatient physical therapy benefits will be TheraMatrix Physical Therapy Network (TPTN). If you receive a prescription for outpatient physical therapy, please contact TPTN to locate the nearest provider by calling 1-888-638-8786 or going online to www.theramatrix.comand using the provider directory search.
From the Chattanooga Times Free Press: A top global official for Volkswagen's works council says the group will block the automaker's expansion in Chattanooga unless a similar labor panel is put into place at the factory. A German newspaper reported that VW Group deputy council chief Stephan Wolf said, "We will only agree to an extension of the site or any other model contract when it is clear how to proceed with the employees' representatives in the United States." Of more than 60 VW factories worldwide, the Chattanooga plant is the only one without a works council, which represents employees on such issues as pay, benefits and working conditions. But according to U.S. labor law, the local plant's workforce would need to OK union representation before the works council could be set up. This spring, VW's board member in charge of human resources globally said the automaker was talking with the UAW about setting up a German-style works council at the Tennessee plant. It would be the first U.S. auto plant to have such a labor board, experts have said. The step also would provide a much-sought-after foothold by the UAW at a U.S. auto plant owned by a foreign automaker. The Chattanooga Chamber and Republican Gov. Bill Haslam have criticized the effort, saying the UAW isn't needed.
Speaking of the need for a voice in the workplace, Automotive News reports that Nissan Motor Co. is stepping up safety procedures at U.S. manufacturing facilities after three accidental deaths in 18 months at its Smyrna, Tenn., assembly plant. A maintenance worker was killed in an accident in the plant's body assembly area at 1:30 a.m. CDT on June 16. Nissan identified the employee as Michael Hooper, 43, a 21-year veteran of the automaker. A supplier worker, whom Nissan has not identified, was killed in an accident inside the plant's paint operation on April 25. A contract driver for the operation was killed in a trucking accident on the property on Jan. 27, 2012.
Nissan manufacturing spokesman Justin Saia said the company is working with authorities to investigate the June incident. "We are implementing additional rigorous safety audits of all contractors at our facilities to ensure adherence to safety standards and guidelines," the company said in a written statement. "We continue to implement stricter governance and oversight over all contractors and their employees operating in our facilities, including mandatory participation in weekly safety briefings led by Nissan safety personnel. We also require that contractors conduct job hazard analysis reviews prior to performing any task at our facilities.”
From Reuters: Ford Motor Co is launching a two-year pilot program with the United Auto Workers and a UAW-affiliated retiree healthcare trust aimed at lowering medical costs for the second-largest U.S. automaker's active and retired hourly workers. Between 1,200 and 1,500 unionized workers and retirees in southeastern Michigan with chronic but manageable diseases are expected to join the pilot program, the automaker, the union and the UAW Retiree Medical Benefits Trust said on Monday. Under this program, Ford, the UAW and the trust hope to cut healthcare costs - rather than shift the burden to others - by encouraging workers to treat and address health issues earlier rather than wait until conditions grow more severe and therefore more expensive. It is an effort to "bend the cost curve," according to Marty Mulloy, Ford's vice president of labor affairs. About 61 percent of annual healthcare costs for Ford and the UAW trust stem from five chronic diseases, including diabetes, asthma, coronary artery disease, congestive heart failure and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
The UAW trust spends $4.5 billion a year on healthcare for 800,000 retirees from General Motors Co, Ford and Chrysler Group LLC. Participation in the pilot is voluntary and workers will be recommended to the program by their doctors. Only non-Medicare eligible retirees can join the pilot program. Participants will have access to one of 12 personal care nurses who will help patients navigate the healthcare system and track their progress. Each nurse will handle a maximum of 125 cases a year. Both GM and Chrysler are in talks with the UAW about a similar program for active hourly workers, said Susanne Mitchell, director of the UAW's Social Security department. Ford and the trust will pay for the salaries of 12 personal care nurses and consultants who are part of the pilot program, which kicks off on July 1.
Tom Brune
UAW/GM Communications Coordinator
Wentzville Assembly
636-327-2119
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