While there is no smoking gun that directly links the UAW to the Detroit automakers’ collapse, the union definitely had a hand in the Big Three’s current downslide. The majority of union workers have been overpaid for decades, evidenced by the UAW’s recent concession to cut wages in half. Mismanagement and poor products are also to blame for Detroit’s current problems, but UAW President Ron Gettelfinger must have his blinders on pretty tight.
According to Gettelfinger, Detroit’s current situation has nothing to do with past UAW contracts, the 30+ years of mismanagement or even the inferior products that have been rolling out of Detroit until just recently. Instead, Gettelfinger solely blames the economic downturn for the imminent collapse of the Big Three.
“We’re here not because of what the auto industry has done,” Gettelfinger told the Associated Press. “We’re here because of what has happened to the economy.”
That’s a pretty bold statement, especially considering that no other automakers’ U.S. operations are in such dire straits as the Big Three’s. But it makes sense that Gettelfinger wants to divert all attention from the current situation in Detroit as the UAW would suffer greatly if any of the Big Three were to go out of business – and it really doesn’t look like Toyota or Honda will be picking up a UAW contract anytime soon.
