Question: Is the press just being sloppy on this issue regarding supposedly pampered autoworkers, or are there issues of class in play? Because honestly, I've had trouble escaping the not-very-subtle elitist, get-a-load-of-this tone that has run through the media's misinformation on the topic; i.e., "These autoworkers get paid that?!"
And why has there been so little media interest in the salaries pocketed by AIG and Citibank employees at a time when the government has moved in quickly to bailout those white collar giants?
Make no mistake: The $70-an-hour claim represents a classic case of conservative misinformation. It's also a very dangerous one. The falsehood about autoworkers is being spread at a crucial time, when a make-or-break public debate is taking place, a debate that could affect millions of American workers.
Read the full Media Matters column here.
http://www.canow.org/canoworg/2008/12/economic-catch22.html
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Exactly the Point. Like anything else we hear in the news, there has to be some skepticism. Didn't $70 sound a little high to you? It did me. Fact is this was a fact brought out by a Repuglican think tank and is a bona fide figure, of sorts. If you take all monies paid to employees, their health insurance, retirees and their pension costs, and survivirs of retirees, and a couple of other associated groups, and then divide it by the active work force, you get $70 per hour. Figures may sometimes lie, but liars (Republicans) always figure. Got it?
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According to the UAW's own figures, the actual average hourly rate amongst UNION Represented workers is about $55-$60 per hour... That's NOT including retiree benefits, which actually SHOULD be included because they ARE Labor Costs and they WERE obtained by the UAW..
Regardless of all that, the simple fact is, no one is blaming the Unions solely.. The Unions, however, DO share some responsibility in running the companies into the ground..
You don't see any commentaries here on HuffPo excusing the excesses of the CEOs and Management, do you??
Yet, we see dozens of commentaries excusing the excesses of the Unions.
Why is that??
Michale.....
First, you've been complaining that the union had presented no figures, and now you're coming out with THIS???
Second, the unions figures come up to $28-$35/hr for wages, and then benefits on top of that! You're STILL reaching to try to claim $70/hr!!
From the UAW website:
In 2006 a typical UAW-represented assembler at GM earned $27.81 per hour of straight-time labor. A typical UAW-represented skilled-trades worker at GM earned $32.32 per hour of straight-time labor.
So, using the UAW's ***OWN NUMBERS*** the average hourly wage, sans retiree benefits, is anywhere from $58 p/h to $82 p/h...
Sounds kinda excessive to me...
This doesn't even take into account the excesses of the Jobs Bank programs that pay workers $30+ per hour to do absolutely nothing...
Given these facts, I am at a loss to understand how ANYONE can say that the Unions are completely blameless in this matter..
Michale.....
Second, and once again, if you insist on adding in the RETIREE benefits (which were EARNED with labor, but are not being PAID to labor!!!!) then you might as well add in the electricity cost, since the workers cannot work without electricity, so that probably puts us up over the $200/hr figure!!!
Come on Michale, you are not using logic here. I GUARANTEE that no worker works enough OT/holiday/double time to bring the average up to ANYWHERE near that figure you quote!!!
BS!! Even when averaging in the benefits costs, our wages never approached that amount. The anger and class warfare that the false statements fomented I will never forget. I guess everybody will be happy when EVERYONE is making $8/hr. Feel better now?
When all the health care costs, benefits package and retirement benefits are considered, the hourly "wage" is quite close to the $70 an hour mark..
If you have any factual evidence to show otherwise, I'll be happy to see it.
But simply making the claim it's not true, when there is empirical evidence to show that it IS true, won't sway many people.
You might also research the JOBS BANK Program that the Unions have.
Workers are paid over $30 an hour to do absolutely nothing..
No one is claiming that the Unions are solely to blame for the running the car companies into the ground.
But it is undeniable that the Unions DO share a measure of responsibility...
Michale.....
And as for the JOBS BANK that you are claiming here. Sometimes the company must do work on a line or the whole factory, and I know that YOU wouldn't like to be told that you will not be allowed to work for a period while this is done.
At least, no one has been able to provide any FACTUAL evidence to dispute it..
Let's be clear..
The failure of the Big 3 does not rest SOLELY on the Unions..
But, it is equally undeniable that the Union greed (along with the CEO and Management greed) is part and parcel to the same problem.
Michale.....
"The average GM assembly-line worker makes about $28 per hour in wages, and I can assure you that GM is not paying $42 an hour in health insurance and pension plan contributions. Rather, the $70 per hour figure (or $73 an hour, or whatever) is a ridiculous number obtained by adding up GM's total labor, health, and pension costs, and then dividing by the total number of hours worked. In other words, it includes all the healthcare and retirement costs of retired workers."
Not to mention the fact that you are trusting the executives when they say the union needs to make concessions and they "claim" how much money it costs them already!
As far as the name calling of conservatives above I guess that can stand on its own, I'll consider the source.
Conservatives hate allowing people to have a voice. That's why they supported the overthrow of democracies in Latin America, the murder of labor leaders, and corruption throughout the world.
If you want to see examples of "conservative paradise", look at either Saudi Arabia or Columbia. Both are shining examples of what the conservative movement would love to bring home to the USA.