UAW Says It's 'At Bargaining Table' to Help Carmakers (Update1)
By Alex Ortolani
Nov. 21 (Bloomberg) -- United Auto Workers President Ron Gettelfinger said he's ``at the bargaining table'' to help find ways to cut costs at U.S. carmakers, signaling the union may be flexible in making concessions to push through an aid package.
``We are at the bargaining table every day working on things to make these companies, to put them in better shape if you will,'' Gettelfinger said in an interview on Bloomberg Television's ``Political Capital with Al Hunt,'' scheduled to air today. ``Other people need to come in to see what they can do to assist these companies.''
The union, which agreed to cut new-worker pay in half and end fixed pensions last year, has resisted calls to yield more to help advance a U.S. bailout. Lawmakers including Alabama Representative Spencer Bachus, the top Republican on the House Financial Services Committee, have cited UAW costs as one reason they can't support using taxpayer dollars for automakers.
``To say that we need to go in and do more, I think the UAW has been at the bargaining table, we remain at the bargaining table,'' Gettelfinger said.
``I think if you go back and look at the flexibility that we've demonstrated in the past -- and I can just begin with the mid-contract in '05 -- we went in and adjusted a contract,'' he said. ``Most people thought we wouldn't do that, but we did it because we needed to.''
Delaying Action
Democratic congressional leaders put off action until next month on the $25 billion in low-interest loans the automakers are seeking after two days of hearings. General Motors Corp., Ford Motor Co. and Chrysler LLC must submit viability plans Dec. 2 and Congress would meet the week of Dec. 8 to consider aid, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said yesterday.
The Bush administration today criticized Democrats for failing to pass aid for automakers.
``It is appalling that Congress decided to leave town without addressing a problem that they themselves said needed to be addressed,'' White House Press Secretary Dana Perino told reporters.
Gettelfinger said the UAW hopes the Treasury Department will provide a ``low-interest bridge loan'' to automakers to keep them out of bankruptcy.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi rejected bankruptcy as a solution for domestic automakers, saying it would be ``digging a hole far too deep.''
Prepackaged Bankruptcy
President-elect Barack Obama's transition team is exploring a swift, prepackaged bankruptcy for automakers as a possible solution to the industry's financial crisis, according to a person familiar with the matter.
``Rather than going to that next step, let's hope we can solve it before that,'' Pelosi said at a briefing in Washington.
Under the UAW contracts signed last year, hourly pay and benefits for new hires were cut to about $26 from about $78. The 2007 accords also call for creating union-managed trusts that will take over retiree health-care obligations starting in 2010.
While some critics have demanded the union consider allowing automakers to delay payments to the health-care fund, Gettelfinger said that decision would be up to the federal courts.
Lawmakers in hearings this week also criticized the salaries of auto chief executive officers and their use of corporate jets to get to the hearings. Gettelfinger said in the interview that the complaints were a ``distraction'' from aiding the industry.
Regretting Decisions
``We have been brutal with the companies when we meet with them privately about a lot of things,'' Gettelfinger said. ``That was a decision they made and I'm sure they regret it now.''
A Democratic plan to help the automakers with funds from the recently approved $700 billion bank-rescue package stalled in the face of Republican opposition and a veto threat by President George W. Bush.
In a Detroit press conference yesterday, Gettelfinger said automakers including Toyota Motor Corp., Honda Motor Co. and Daimler AG have received incentives for building plants in states such as Alabama.
``We can support our competition but not an industry in need,'' he said.
To contact the reporter on this story: Alex Ortolani in Southfield, Michigan, at aortolani1@bloomberg.net
Last Updated: November 21, 2008 12:17 EST |
