Labor & Employment Law

UAW: U.S. Cars on the Road to Success

By Tula Connell

Higher profits and new fuel-efficient models have put American-made cars back on the road again?with the help of taxpayers and the workers who have worked closely with the Big Three automakers to ensure their success.

In July, Ford posted a stronger-than-expected quarterly profit of $2.6 billion?some $1 billion more than analysts predicted?with promises of more earnings in 2011. Chrysler, which cut its net loss to $197 million from January through March, expects to announce its second-quarter earnings in mid-August. General Motor’s (GM’s) U.S. sales for June rose 11 percent from the year-ago period and the company is again building popular cars.

Says UAW President Bob King:

The commitment, sacrifices and hard work of the men and women at UAW-represented companies is an enormous part of the positive news coming from Ford, GM and Chrysler, where UAW members are producing best-in-class quality results and building vehicles that hands-down beat global competition.

Taxpayer investment in aiding GM and Chrysler is paying off: A July 25 analysis by the Detroit Free Press suggested taxpayers could get back about $74 billion of the $86 billion the federal government made available in 2008 and 2009 to save GM, Chrysler and Ally Financial.

The Obama administration made the right move in aiding GM and Chrysler, King says, adding that because the administration understands: 

how vital auto manufacturing jobs are to every community in this country, these companies and UAW workers can and will continue to succeed.

Full post as published by AFL-CIO NOW BLOG on July 30, 2010 (boomark / email).