Of Strikes and Other Nonsense

Yesterday morning, the UAW (United Auto Workers for you lay-people) called a general strike against GM (General Motors, again for you lay-people). Not just a local limited strike, but a general, nationwide strike. Every GM plant has effectively been idled. And it is all because they don't like the concessions GM is asking the Union to accept so that GM (and the other two of the Big Three -- Ford and Chrysler) can hope to regain market share against Japanese and Korean automakers in the U.S. market.

See, the idea is that if GM can lower it's cost, particularly the high annual expense it incurs for retiree benefits (e.g. healthcare and pension expenses for those union members who have retired after putting in their time at high wage, guaranteed for life unless you screw up royally, jobs working in a factory), they can perhaps lower the cost involved in making automobiles and make the product end up being more attractive to U.S. buyers from a consumer standpoint.

But, the Union sees it as defending the lifestyles of it's members. That is pretty much it, in a nutshell. "We're entitled to this, and you are sure as heck gonna make sure we are still getting it, cuz we don't want to take no pay cut or no reduction in benefits or have to pay anything more out of our pocket for benefits. Oh, and you're gonna make sure our jobs are guaranteed, and even if you don't have work for us, you're gonna still pay our salary cuz you are gonna have a labor pool from which you will call us back to active work when you lay us off."

I'm not a big fan of labor unions. Why? Not because I'm a Yankee. Not because I'm a Republican. Not because I have an MBA. I'm not a big fan of labor unions because they are no better than the corporations they acuse of being greedy.

Think about it, Mr. Labor Union Head... Michigan has got one of the worst, if not the worst, unemployment rate in the current national economy... something like 7.5%. You call a general strike to quibble over stuff that all the people who work who aren't in unions can only dream of having. Your strike has already started to have a ripple effect on other companies, and before long on your union brothers that work for the suppliers at the tier one parts manufacturers (they won't have much storage space left after another couple days for the parts they keep on making), on the trucking firms and union truck drivers who won't have work because there is nothing to haul, on the steel plants and their union workers who will suddenly have to scale back production when demand for steel drops. And, your strike comes at a time when the beloved Democrat do-nothing, good-for-nothing Governor of the great state of Michigan is dumbfounded when asked why she can't seem to get business to locate in Michigan as she seeks to increase taxes and as more firms flee the state.

Anyway, I wish I had the luxury of calling a general strike for myself against life and the inequity of this world. I think I should be free to do so, because I am entitled to having a better standard of living. I'm entitled to less stress and more fun. I'm entitled to all kinds of neat grown up toys and vacations that cost lots of money. I'm entitled to living debt free. I'm entitled to anything I want and all that other nonsense.