Word: uaw
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
Contrary to popular belief, workers' wages and benefits at the transplant factories--none of which are unionized except for joint ventures with Detroit--are comparable to those at factories organized by the United Auto Workers (UAW). Assembly-line workers, regardless of their location, earn about $45,000 to $100,000 a year (depending on experience and overtime). Bonuses are typically tied to profitability, and health-care and pension benefits vary only slightly...
...long and often bitter relationship between the Big Three and the UAW means that their work practices are rooted not in mutual trust but in a system of sometimes picky rules. A "skilled tradesman" may be required to change a fuse in an assembly-line machine, a task that an assembly worker could easily be trained to perform. Work rules differ from plant to plant because agreements are negotiated with local union leaders. If a tradesman notices a line worker fiddling with equipment, he may file a grievance, claiming that his job is being undercut by a lower-paid employee...
Since the early 1980s, the UAW has mounted campaigns to organize the transplants' hourly workers, but they have consistently voted against joining, in part because of strong community support for the manufacturers and a sense of mutual loyalty. "Nissan takes care of its employees, and if the union tries to organize us, I'll probably oppose it," says Murphy Wilson, 27, a newly hired technician in Canton. The UAW has tried four times to win over Nissan's Smyrna work force but was voted down 2 to 1 in its last try in 2001. "We have not given...
...next round of national labor negotiations this summer, the Big Three are expected to demand benefit cuts and broader job classifications. Griping has already begun. "They want us to do more and more and offer us less and less," says Bill Parker, president of UAW Local 1700 in Detroit and head of a Chrysler work force. In theory, Detroit could emulate the transplants and set up nonunionized shops in the South, but the UAW would probably bring assembly operations to a halt...
Though the UAW has resisted manufacturers' attempts to outsource much production to lower-paying suppliers, GM may have set a precedent with its new Cadillac plant in Lansing, Mich., which opened last year. Be more flexible about work rules, and let us outsource more, GM said, or we'll set up shop in Mexico or Canada (where the Canadian Auto Workers split from its American parent in 1985). The plant is now a model of Detroit lean and mean. Its vehicles rate second, to Lexus, in initial quality. Suppliers deliver components every four hours (vs. every two weeks at some...