
GM drops workers’ health care during strike, a sign UAW impasse could drag on - howard941
https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2019/09/17/gm-dropped-workers-health-care-during-strike-company-says-its-standard-procedure/
======
MagicWishMonkey
Yet more proof that our method of tying health insurance to employers is
completely insane.

~~~
aurizon
Yes, It is a national shame that the USA has such bad average health care. The
rich havd the best in the world. The poor die young. Just look at the age
stats for Cuba versus the USA in these charts etc. Yes, Cubans outlive
Americans, so do Canadians. All dues to crooked Doctors, insurers, pharma
companys, hospitals and...
[https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/sp.dyn.le00.in](https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/sp.dyn.le00.in)

[https://www.un.org/en/development/desa/population/publicatio...](https://www.un.org/en/development/desa/population/publications/pdf/mortality/World-
Mortality-2017-Data-Booklet.pdf) [https://ourworldindata.org/life-
expectancy](https://ourworldindata.org/life-expectancy)

------
woofcat
When unions want contract obligations on job security it reminds me of a Jack
Welch quote. To paraphrase: "GE doesn't give you job security, the market
gives you job security"

How can GM commit to not reducing workforce if sales decline? Just running a
deficit?

~~~
MagicWishMonkey
I think their biggest ask is for GM to stop using temp workers to get around
union obligations. When you have a "temp worker" who has been working for you
for 4-5 years, they should probably be classified as an employee.

~~~
woofcat
However that doesn't impact current union employees. Is it just the union
fearing for its own loss of power?

~~~
godzillabrennus
In part, though I think it's more complicated than just a loss of power. The
responsibilities for employers are getting more and more expensive so they are
doing the rational thing and switching to contractors.

------
aurizon
Unions spoil workers in collusion with manglement. Manglement surrenders to
wage demands and passes it on as higher prices and ups the use of robots which
layts off workers. Those left are well paid and they are the older people and
the company loses in the market place as imports enter. I recall a time with
500,000 workers at the big three. Now what? 35,000 or so left. The big problem
is 4 year contracts and COLA clauses. a guy at $15 versus a guy at $35 with
health and other benefits automatically paid as they climb. We need annual
contracts, industry wide = no pattern bargaining where they harm the weakest
to make them yield wage increases they can not afford and the USA weakens. max
1 year contract, You loes one month = a little over 8% of wages lost. No
signing bonuses. 100% strike of all car makers so 2/3rds can not stay at work
and cross subsidize the strikers.

and in the COLA increase, the COLA is based on the average of workers. Fringe
benefits, health, pensions, legals etc can be $30 PER HOUR all tax free. Make
those taxable and allow the workers to have that fringe benefit as cash. The
UAW exists is such a distorted world... I would like to see Snowden post all
auto worker contracts on line and see how they have sucked money from us all
and hurt tha nation.

~~~
SQueeeeeL
I hear this argument brought up a lot relating to minimum wage at McDonalds.
"IF THEY RAISE IT THEY'LL JUST FIRE EVERYONE". Guess what, they already
started replacing cashiers with touch screens. Those 400k would've been
replaced by robots whether or not the union was there, all that happened was
while those 400k jobs were essential to making GM money, those workers got to
have a decent life.

~~~
godzillabrennus
McDonalds sees the writing on the wall with the minimum wage and living wage
debates. They are proactively mitigating future issues with paying more money
to employees.

------
pmiller2
This should be illegal. It's nothing more than a strongarm attempt by GM
against the union.

~~~
lurquer
How long should an employer provide health-insurance to a person who is not
working?

~~~
pmiller2
If they're part of a union that's on strike? For the duration of the strike,
or until their employment ends, whichever comes first.

~~~
lurquer
Who determines when their employment ends?

The employer has the right to fire whomever it wishes. The employee has the
right to quit whenever he wishes. Why would one expect an employer to pay
compensation or benefits to an employee who doesn’t show up to work? Unions
have a right to organize. And employers have the right to fire every last one
of them and go non-union. Do you not agree?

~~~
pmiller2
Employment ends when the employee quits or the employer fires the employee.
However, you are wrong: they do not have the right to fire striking employees.
That violates the National Labor Relations Act. In fact, dropping the workers'
insurance policy might also violate the NLRA.

------
spo81rty
I am guessing GM has no plans to allow the current insurance to continue.

This is their way of saying the new insurance is going to be more expensive
and more in line with national averages.

------
detail-oriented
No work, no compensation, seems reasonable.

