General Motors is offering lucrative buyout plans to the entire unionized production workforce after posting a record loss. The $38.7 billion loss in 2007 is a record,
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — General Motors posted better-than-expected financial results for the latest quarter, but indicated that its efforts to shave costs are not behind it as the automaker offered lucrative buyouts to 74,000 employees – its entire U.S. hourly workforce.
The nation's largest automaker reported improved fourth-quarter results from its overseas auto operations, which helped to balance out continued losses at its North American plants. But problems at finance unit GMAC, of which it still owns 49%, coupled with large charges taken in the third quarter related to tax credits, left GM with a company record $38.7 billion net loss for 2007.
Lucrative buyout packages are not new at GM (GM, Fortune 500) and other U.S. automakers such as Ford Motor (F, Fortune 500) and Chrysler LLC. GM offered similar deals to all its U.S. workers in 2006, as it sought to close plants and trim capacity to bring it in line with reduced demand for its products. That package helped it pare U.S. hourly employment by nearly 40,000 in the last two years.
But the latest range of offers to the remaining 74,000 GM workers represented by the United Auto Workers union is designed to allow the company to save money by paying new workers significantly less in pay and benefits than its current workforce, rather than lead to the large reduction in staffing sought in previous buyout packages.
The buyouts range up to $140,000 for a worker with ten years, half that for those with less seniority. GM expects to replace many of the workers with lower paid positions as negotiated with the UAW.
You have a typo in your opening paragraph, Gaius. Billion, not million.
Thanks.
GM proposes firing, excuse me, ” buys out” all U.S. citizens.
GM then employs only illegal aliens in its’ U.S. production facilities, and pays them a pittance.
The Wall Street Journal would be thrilled.
So would “see you at the bill signing” Bush.
As well as “Amnesty John McCain”.
I plan on taking a “siesta” this November.
That’s Spanish for sitting on my butt.
The GM management is looking at what’s going on over at Chrysler, and they see the handwriting on the wall. Ford won’t be far behind.
The American auto industry and the unions dug themselves into this hole. When my late husband retired from General Motors in 2000, he was making $25 an hour–base pay; he often worked overtime at double the base pay. Do the math. Top of the line benefits–and not a dime was taken out of that base pay. Put on furlough for a year while the plant was retooled–still got the base pay. I worked as a secretary for 40 years–and was lucky if I got half of that. Excuse the schadenfreude!
The slave traders will be very happy that their open border advocates are fighting so hard to continue an illegal practice.
My question is how will Tyson’s Food in Arkansas complete with Ford Motor in Michigan.
Maybe the Ford Foundation and the Tide’s Foundation and a few other Progressive thinking foundations can come up with a way to enlighten people into centralized agreement that illegal immigration slave trading is a liberal philosophy representing good-intentions for all God’s chilens.
It could be worse, the government could offer a bailout to GM.