Our local newspaper this morning had a picture of a man on the second page who had to move here in order to keep his automotive assembly job with General Motors. He did not seem very happy about the prospect of moving some 270 miles from his home to this blighted region of the United States in order to maintain his pay and benefits.
The article did go on to mention that the United Auto Workers (UAW) currently has about 355,000 members. In 1979 the UAW had 1.5 million members; or to state things in a slightly different way, there has been a 76% decline in UAW membership during that interval. Looked at objectively, those are rather astonishing figures.
Yet, the individual pictured in the newspaper pined for the days long past when General Motors and other automotive companies were incapable of saying the word "no" to assorted union demands. Today, on the other hand, many are discomfited by the fact that the UAW finds it necessary to work with General Motors to maintain a reasonable level of profitability. The United States government bailout of General Motors has resulted in a sizable stock ownership by the UAW, and it is no longer prudent or wise for them to foster an adversarial relationship with the company.
So it is going to be an interesting thing to watch in the next several years as traditional unionists confront the automotive companies as adversaries, while other unionists will counsel cooperation with those same companies. The smart money is on the traditional, dyed-in-the-wool unionists to destroy what's left of those automotive companies.
If you belong to a union long enough, you will eventually become unemployed. If you don't believe that, just ask the 1,145,000 union members who are no longer part of the UAW.
The article did go on to mention that the United Auto Workers (UAW) currently has about 355,000 members. In 1979 the UAW had 1.5 million members; or to state things in a slightly different way, there has been a 76% decline in UAW membership during that interval. Looked at objectively, those are rather astonishing figures.
Yet, the individual pictured in the newspaper pined for the days long past when General Motors and other automotive companies were incapable of saying the word "no" to assorted union demands. Today, on the other hand, many are discomfited by the fact that the UAW finds it necessary to work with General Motors to maintain a reasonable level of profitability. The United States government bailout of General Motors has resulted in a sizable stock ownership by the UAW, and it is no longer prudent or wise for them to foster an adversarial relationship with the company.
So it is going to be an interesting thing to watch in the next several years as traditional unionists confront the automotive companies as adversaries, while other unionists will counsel cooperation with those same companies. The smart money is on the traditional, dyed-in-the-wool unionists to destroy what's left of those automotive companies.
If you belong to a union long enough, you will eventually become unemployed. If you don't believe that, just ask the 1,145,000 union members who are no longer part of the UAW.
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