The Assault On Labor

[Deleted member 17588]

Does this sound eerily familiar?

* "[The company] says it's making a final offer to workers to accept cost-cutting before it asks a bankruptcy court to impose the cuts."

* "[The company wants] unions to accept reduced pension benefits and changes in work rules to lower costs."

* "[The company] wants to outsource some delivery work."

* "The company said Saturday that if the unions reject the offer, it will push ahead with efforts in bankruptcy court to throw out the unions' collective bargaining agreements. A union official warned that could lead to a strike."

* "[The company] filed for Chapter 11 protection in January, its second trip through bankruptcy court in less than a decade."

* "The company's new CEO...wants to cut annual pension contributions from $103 million to $25 million."

* "[The union said the company] had provided only the barest details of how the new pensions program would work, and that employees already accepted big concessions in 2008."

* [The CEO blames the company's] problems on high pension and labor costs that led to insufficient investment in the company and new products."

* "Before the company filed for bankruptcy protection, eight top executives got pay raises last year of up to 80 percent."


The Story Here

 

[IcedTeAA]

Read the article in the local paper yesterday and thought the exact same thing...

 

[eolesen]

Familiar, and it repeats a pretty common theme in many bankruptcies from "legacy" companies like Hostess, GM, and the airlines:

"high pension and labor costs led to insufficient investment in the company and new products."

The same thing has happened with the Postal Service and Amtrak, although they haven't yet declared bankruptcy.

You'll see a similar theme emerging in the public sector:

"high pension and labor costs led to insufficient investment in infrastructure."

Oh, wait. That's already happening. Just go drive on a state tax funded highway in Michigan, Illinois, California or New York....

 

[Hopeful]

Familiar, and it repeats a pretty common theme in many bankruptcies from "legacy" companies like Hostess, GM, and the airlines:

"high pension and labor costs led to insufficient investment in the company and new products."

The same thing has happened with the Postal Service and Amtrak, although they haven't yet declared bankruptcy.

You'll see a similar theme emerging in the public sector:

"high pension and labor costs led to insufficient investment in infrastructure."

Oh, wait. That's already happening. Just go drive on a state tax funded highway in Michigan, Illinois, California or New York....

The future of the working class in this country is dismal. labor gets blamed for everything. Covenient scapegoat. In the end, Americans will be working until they die and companies will be stuck with a much older, less productive workforce.

 

[TWU informer]

It sounds familiar because US Corprations are now using the Bankruptcy Laws as a negotiation tool instead of the true intended purpose.

And again, why with a Democrat as President, and the AFL-CIO so heavily involved in the Poltical Arena, does this type of activity continue?
Answer, because Organized Labor is living a lie.

 

[DNTULSA]

It sounds familiar because US Corprations are now using the Bankruptcy Laws as a negotiation tool instead of the true intended purpose.

And again, why with a Democrat as President, and the AFL-CIO so heavily involved in the Poltical Arena, does this type of activity continue?
Answer, because Organized Labor is living a lie.

Organized labor is feathering it's own nest. There aren't enough feathers to go around.

The union officers, friends and relatives will be taken care of.

The rest of you lower ranking enlisted swine are SOL.

 

[Frank Szabo]

... snip

And again, why with a Democrat as President, and the AFL-CIO so heavily involved in the Poltical Arena, does this type of activity continue?

... snip

Organized Labor does not operate for those they supposedly represent anymore for but only for their own existence. The ruling elite have divided themselves into "parties" that have no intention of working for anyone but themselves - at this point, there is no difference between them except in their rhetorics.

Many "useful idiots" assisted in getting a "democrat" president elected but that doesn;t seem to be working too well for them right now - if he's tossed in November, the republican rival will be no different.

 

[Bob Owens]

The future of the working class in this country is dismal. labor gets blamed for everything. Covenient scapegoat. In the end, Americans will be working until they die and companies will be stuck with a much older, less productive workforce.

And the young will be turning over cars,setting them on fire, looting and other activities with all their spare time.

 

[Buck]

Is that why the TWU backed the 99%? To show that Labor is on their side.

 

[nbmcg01]

Is that why the TWU backed the 99%? To show that Labor is on their side.

No where in the bk plan has AA announced the proposed changes to senior mangt. jobs and pay...I know "we" need to remain competitive and keep the talent that got us here.

 

[eolesen]

No where in the bk plan has AA announced the proposed changes to senior mangt. jobs and pay...I know "we" need to remain competitive and keep the talent that got us here.

Since they're not subject to a hearing, they don't need to go into specifics.

Consider this, though, Nancy...

AMR is already down six heads at the senior executive level -- Arpey, Ford, Reding, Del Valle, Dolara. Dolara, Reding and Del Valle weren't explicitly replaced; their successors kept their previous areas and just had span of control expanded...

At the "VP Gold" level, it's a little less clear yet, but that will be "cascading" over the next couple weeks from what I'm told.

We know Mark Burdette (Employee Relations) retired in December, and two weeks ago, Charlie Sultan (VP of AAdvantage Partner Marketing) resigned. There may be a few others who have left that I hadn't heard about yet. But there will be VP's left without a seat when the music stops. Some will retire, others will be left to "pursue other interests"....

I don't doubt it will work out to at least a 20% headcount reduction by the time they finish eliminating lower level VPs. Likewise, on a salary basis, three of the ones who left at the highest level were earning in excess of $500K per year (Ford, Del Valle, Dolara) and their replacements won't be earning anywhere near that.

Just give it some time.

 

[Buck]

No where in the bk plan has AA announced the proposed changes to senior mangt. jobs and pay...I know "we" need to remain competitive and keep the talent that got us here.

The point. Is the TWU really on the side of the workers within their organization? The TWU jumped on the OWS bunch after they were already marching. Why didn't the union(s) that are paid to support the workers jump on our cause. What did the TWU show and who did they show it to? Since the corporate is the enemy, why does the union work with management?

Now on these forums the workers are attacking each other and both the company and the TWU leadership are just sitting back and watching. Is unionism going to come out in strength and put corporate in their place.

And no where is bankruptcy does it show that those at the TWU International are going to be harmed.

 

[cf6mech]

Unions today are in themselves corporations, as such they are no different than the companies they work with. They no longer represent their clients but themselves, whats worse is they weave a web of lies pretending to be for the " working man " or " middle class" . Nothing could be further from the truth.....

 

[xUT]

Familiar, and it repeats a pretty common theme in many bankruptcies from "legacy" companies like Hostess, GM, and the airlines:

"high pension and labor costs led to insufficient investment in the company and new products."

The same thing has happened with the Postal Service and Amtrak, although they haven't yet declared bankruptcy.

You'll see a similar theme emerging in the public sector:

"high pension and labor costs led to insufficient investment in infrastructure."

Oh, wait. That's already happening. Just go drive on a state tax funded highway in Michigan, Illinois, California or New York....

Before the company filed for bankruptcy protection, eight top executives got pay raises last year of up to 80 percent.

DOH!
Let's see how much the KERP bonuses are for the exec plans.
B) xUT

 

[southwind]

Unions today are in themselves corporations, as such they are no different than the companies they work with. They no longer represent their clients but themselves, whats worse is they weave a web of lies pretending to be for the " working man " or " middle class" . Nothing could be further from the truth.....

Finally.................someone get's it !

Only difference between the two? One puts money in your pocket, the other has their hand in your pocket !