UAW strike.

[KyTruckPlant]

Not surprised that international leadership would create a situation to drive manufacturing out of USA

It's what the international union does, when it's not lining it's own pockets

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[flip]

At some point the expenses won't be covered by offsets in internal cost cutting, more dealer screwing or by transferring more burden to the consumer. At what point is the model unsustainable? This isn't sticking it to Ford so much as it is transferring the additional expenses to the consumer, suppliers and dealers. The Ford family and investors are shareholders as well and when expenses and legacy costs increase it cuts into share value. One of things that chaps my ass is there's no value proposition besides continuing to show up and do the thing they were hired to do. AFAIK, they still can't easily terminate underperforming or crappy workers without going through a long drawn out process. Is assembly quality going to get better if they get a raise? Some of this is engineering, but a lot of the stuff we see messed up off the transport is just people not giving a shit and letting workmanship become our problem. My feeling is most workers do their jobs, have some level of pride in their work and do care but there's also those that don't and should be terminated, not protected.

I get the whole collective bargaining thing and see some advantages to a company and workers but when it's weaponized and threats are made, it seems less like part of business and more like a hostage situation. We had a furniture company that was nearly 100 years old go out of business after foreign pressure and strike. Once the strike started, customers pulled orders and the rest was history. 124 jobs lost in the matter of a couple of months, business gone forever and the building sat empty for nearly 20 years. Strike can force the other parties hand or completely backfire when applied incorrectly. Just saying, this impacts a lot more people than just the plant workers.

 

[Emd]

Oh, but this time we have international leadership that is just chomping at the bit to strike. I've been with Ford for 31 years and have never been through a strike, but this time, I get the feeling that there will not even be any extensions, and the rumor mill has it that all 3 are going to strike, not just one at a time like years past.

Just retired from KTP in May. I'm hearing same thing you are. The new leadership is nothing like what we have had in the past as far as I can tell.

 

[HBTFD]

Oh, but this time we have international leadership that is just chomping at the bit to strike. I've been with Ford for 31 years and have never been through a strike, but this time, I get the feeling that there will not even be any extensions, and the rumor mill has it that all 3 are going to strike, not just one at a time like years past.

Reminds me of when Steve won the chairman spot…….

 

[KyTruckPlant]

Reminds me of when Steve won the chairman spot…….

Doesn't it though?

 

[huey]

As a Tier 1 supplier this will be terrible for us if it is prolonged. Our company website has already started talking about how the layoffs will be handled. My division supplies the big three and more more inside our 4 walls. We already have a hard time finding people who want to work, can't imagine how much harder it will be getting people back after the strike ends

We all want great wages for what we do - but the UAW ask is really out of touch with reality IMO.
Makes you wonder if the ford bean counters saw this coming and starting raising prices to help offset the strike cost

 

[flip]

As a Tier 1 supplier this will be terrible for us if it is prolonged. Our company website has already started talking about how the layoffs will be handled. My division supplies the big three and more more inside our 4 walls. We already have a hard time finding people who want to work, can't imagine how much harder it will be getting people back after the strike ends

We all want great wages for what we do - but the UAW ask is really out of touch with reality IMO.
Makes you wonder if the ford bean counters saw this coming and starting raising prices to help offset the strike cost

These discussions should be happening a year into any new contract so each side can start setting expectations based on what is happening with the economy and state of business leading up to the next renewal. The theatrics that start a few months out from the deadline, including the ensuing instability it causes, is really not productive for either side.

As far as bean counters and dealer theft, yes, it's already started on the sales side with the new program standards.

 

[NatureMan]

@Ford Motor Company stock has been rapidly declining since 52wk high.

Ford has no clue how to appease shareholders either.

 

[jwoobs]

My 2¢, defined benefits (i.e. pensions) are never coming back. Too much liability for the company. 401k’s are paid out and then you’re done with them.

I think the only way UAW gets more compensation is if they agree to headcount reductions. All the OE’s keep pitching the complexity reduction of EVs to their investors, so it follows you’ll need fewer people to assemble them.

If I were at the bargaining table as an OE, I’d be offering more profit sharing. If we keep jacking up interest rates and MSRPs, car sales will take a hit sooner rather than later.

 

[Whisky&Rocks]

As the granddaughter of a split family - dad's side are pretty much all union of some kind, with a lot of UAW/Ford employees and mom's side all non-union construction company owners/workers - I'm finding all of this so fascinating. It's like my whole family got together for a BBQ and decided that instead of playing horseshoes they'd start a ridiculous brawl where everyone ends up bruised and bloody all because a union guy called a non-union guy a scab. (Yes...this has happened and it's ridiculous.)

It's hard to not see the UAW as a major culprit in the massive decline of the Big 3 with respect to market share over the last six decades. I'll continue to sit back and watch, and be grateful my Bronco got produced last month.

 

[jon]

UAW needs to create a situation where they prove their value and then get rewarded when they show clear results. Profit sharing when you contribute and drive up profits. If you cause less profit then you should also be willing to take pay cuts accordingly. Maybe pay employees 100% stock? That way they get compensated same as execs?

 

[shoelessjoe]

UAW needs to create a situation where they prove their value and then get rewarded when they show clear results. Profit sharing when you contribute and drive up profits. If you cause less profit then you should also be willing to take pay cuts accordingly. Maybe pay employees 100% stock? That way they get compensated same as execs?

Yeah that's not going to happen. CEOs make millions of dollars sitting in their ivory towers and the UAW employees ask for a raise and COLA and everyone cries.

 

[BigHoof]

Maybe pay employees 100% stock? That way they get compensated same as execs?

Execs make millions whether good or bad. They run companies into the ground and then in bankruptcy still get bonuses because they claim without them the company will lose even more moneys. Has happened time and time again along with their hundred million golden parachutes. Point being, those at the top and their poor management are just as much at fault as the unions. Just look at Ford rework as an example. They know it is an issue and causes the bleeding of billions yet nothing is done but lip service. (think MIC tops, repeated defective replacements, and Manuals to name a few) That's one reason why the stock is dropping.

 

[bikesandguitars]

Yeah that's not going to happen. CEOs make millions of dollars sitting in their ivory towers and the UAW employees ask for a raise and COLA and everyone cries.

The average annual CEO pay at the Detroit 3 equates to around $75 per employee. The first thing the CEO has to be good at is math. Their compensation isn’t going to affect the rank and file.

 

[bikesandguitars]

Execs make millions whether good or bad. They run companies into the ground and then in bankruptcy still get bonuses because they claim without them the company will lose even more moneys. Has happened time and time again along with their hundred million golden parachutes. Point being, those at the top and their poor management are just as much at fault as the unions. Just look at Ford rework as an example. They know it is an issue and causes the bleeding of billions yet nothing is done but lip service. (think MIC tops, repeated defective replacements, and Manuals to name a few) That's one reason why the stock is dropping.

The executive pay in a bankruptcy has to be approved by the bankruptcy committee who, in almost every case, are a group formed from the top creditors.

The executives asked to stay with the the sinking ship because retaining their knowledge of the inner workings of the company has been decided, by the creditors, as the best way to maximize the outcome for all concerned parties. The moral of the story - the executives are not just giving themselves bonuses.

Trying to replace a tenured financial, operations or logistics leader in the middle of a bankruptcy is probably not in anyone's best interest. And staying with a failing company is not a great job for an exec.

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