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Senate Republicans Likely to Target UAW's "Jobs Bank" This Week

Senate Republicans Likely to Target UAW's "Jobs Bank" This Week

By Colin Mathews's avatar Colin MathewsColin Mathews December 1st, 2008

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As the Big Three trudge back to Washington tomorrow to make their carefully tailored plans for federal assistance, Automotive News says that Republicans are likely to request practices such as the United Auto Workers (UAW) union's "Jobs Bank" be eliminated. These and other concessions are expected to be proposed by some or all of the Big Three as they make more allowances in hopes of placating a Congress none too eager to fund billions in assistance for three companies notorious for inefficient money management.

The UAW's Jobs Bank ensures unionized, hourly auto workers nearly full pay when they are laid off. Automotive News calls the practice "a powerful symbol of auto industry excess."

Senator Kit Bond of Missouri, who is described as a moderate Republican, told Automotive News that "management, workers and investors are going to have to make sacrifices if they truly want to turn around their companies enough to earn taxpayer help." They say that GM will likely be the first to propose the Jobs Bank elimination.

Republican Senator Elizabeth Dole, who recently lost her '08 reelection bid to Democrat Kay Hagan, said that "the enormous costs in union-required benefits are unsustainable. Renegotiating these contracts would be essential if there were to be hope of keeping these companies afloat."--Colin Mathews
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Make sure you check out our partner sites dedicated to focused news, reviews and more for Ford, Chevrolet, Toyota, Honda, and the Toyota Prius. uaw logoEnlarge PhotoAs the Big Three trudge back to Washington tomorrow to make their carefully tailored plans for federal assistance, Automotive News says that Republicans are likely to request practices such as the United Auto Workers (UAW) union's "Jobs Bank" be eliminated. These and other concessions are expected to be proposed by some or all of the Big Three as they make more allowances in hopes of placating a Congress none too eager to fund billions in assistance for three companies notorious for inefficient money management. The UAW's Jobs Bank ensures unionized, hourly auto workers nearly full pay when they are laid off. Automotive News calls the practice "a powerful symbol of auto industry excess." Senator Kit Bond of Missouri, who is described as a moderate Republican, told Automotive News that "management, workers and investors are going to have to make sacrifices if they truly want to turn around their companies enough to earn taxpayer help." They say that GM will likely be the first to propose the Jobs Bank elimination. Republican Senator Elizabeth Dole, who recently lost her '08 reelection bid to Democrat Kay Hagan, said that "the enormous costs in union-required benefits are unsustainable. Renegotiating these contracts would be essential if there were to be hope of keeping these companies afloat."--Colin Mathews --- Make sure you check out our partner sites dedicated to focused news, reviews and more for Ford, Chevrolet, Toyota, Honda, and the Toyota Prius.

Tags: North America, Industry, Politics, Rumor Mill, General Motors

Posted in: 2008, Chrysler, Ford



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Responses (15 total)

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  2. 2

  1. By Ed #1, Posted: 12/1/2008

    Why just Republicans? Decent politicians in BOTH parties should have been UP IN ARMS against the RIDICULOUS Jobs Bank Racket, and not just NOW that it made GM Bankrupt, but from the time they allowed it to exist!

  2. By Mark #2, Posted: 12/1/2008

    Why are we punishing companies for taking care of their employees? What do the GM employees do when their retirements and health care are cut, and their company is forced to lay them off and move their jobs to other countries? It seems that the unions have forced the automakers to take care of their employees, is that bad? When the government forces changes, who will cover the employees then? The taxpayers, through welfare? Why is that better? Perhaps we should require all automakers to take care of their employees like the US automakers do, instead of making the US automakers cut their benefits.

  3. By ED #3, Posted: 12/1/2008

    Mark:
    This blog was NOT about anybody "taking care" of any employee, but about the scandalous, INFAMOUS JOBS BANK program the UAW and the Detroit 3 have, which pays workers FULL TIME to do NOTHING.
    Is this the4 ethic you want to teach your children?
    $73 an hour to do NOTHING?
    ABSOLUTELY SHAMEFUL.
    At least Toyota, when it shut down its tundra plant in TX, and kept paying its wqorkers, not laying off even ONE of them, at least TZoyota ASKED THEM TO PERFORM laudable community service, sweep the streets, clean the parks of th elitter, etc , instead of lay idle and play cards and get drunk!

  4. By Mike B #4, Posted: 12/1/2008

    Ed ~ may I ask where you got your $73 an hour figure?

  5. By Ed #5, Posted: 12/1/2008

    Mike B: Yes you may. These are NOT my figures, but widely public numbers, and they are NOT the worker's take home pay, but, the relevant number that the Detroit 3 have to spend per employee hour, including all benefits etc.
    The corresponding number for transplant workers at Toyota in the US is $48, I believe.
    BUT, please focus, the topic of this blog is the infamous, scandalous JOBS BANK program. Are you familiar with what a total outrage it is, to pay somebody a royal salary to do NOTHING?

  6. By Mike B #6, Posted: 12/1/2008

    I totally know what the jobs bank program is...I worked with it, not in it, with it, as a supervisor. Was pretty tough.
    We pay our government a royal salary...what do they do??? Rhetorical

  7. By Ed #7, Posted: 12/1/2008

    What do you mean "the jobs bank program was pretty tough" (???)
    How tough can it be to be fully paid to do nothing?
    If the Detroit (onetime big) 3 were doing great, nobody would mind. But if they are bankrupt, and ask the taxpayers to cough up $25 billions (not millions!) every few months to stay alive (GM alone burns at least one billion every month), then it is a total scandal to pay people their full salaries and have t hem do absolutely nothing, not even take a training seminar to improve their skills?

  8. By Mike B #8, Posted: 12/1/2008

    I meant tough that you get workers from the jobs bank that aren't qualified for the work you need them to do that day.
    So then you suggest that GM lay them off and let the Govt. pick up the tab? How does that benefit the tax payers? What's the answer? Either way somebody is paying the wages.

  9. By Jack #9, Posted: 12/1/2008

    Mike, that's an interesting view of the job bank, that it's saving the government money, but for a company with a market cap of about 1/100th that of Toyota, I think it's best to render that task unto Caesar. It's not as if these idled workers are going to be put back to work anytime soon.

  10. By R2dad #10, Posted: 12/1/2008

    The destruction of the jobs bank is just the latest for the UAW, as it comes to the end of its union life cycle. No matter how laudable unions were in the 30s and 40s, they are an anachronism today. Unfortunately, there is now more than ever the need for independent organizations that will fairly represent the white collar professionals--"unions" just have too much baggage.

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