Thursday, September 27, 2007

The Buffalo News, Thursday, September 27, 2007

The Buffalo News, Thursday, September 27, 2007

GM pact saves jobs in tradeoff with UAW

General Motors would shed responsibility for $51 billion in future benefits, while jobs at U.S. plants would be preserved

By Fred O. Williams NEWS BUSINESS REPORTER
Updated: 09/27/07 7:42 AM

The proposed contract agreement reached Wednesday at GM — if approved by workers — is designed to save high-paying jobs at auto plants in the Buffalo area and throughout the United States.

At the heart of the deal is this tradeoff: General Motors offloads responsibility for $51 billion in future benefits, and preserves jobs at its U.S. plants in return.

The tentative deal is based on ideas that would have been called crazy until recently. Among them is a multibilliondollar trust fund, administered by the UAW, to pay workers’ health care when they retire.

“I think if it’s set up and run properly, it can work,” said Stuart Bochniarz, a millwright at GM’s Tonawanda Engine Plant. At age 44, the Lockport man is counting on keeping his GM job for another 20 years.

The 1,500 striking local workers began going back to their jobs at Tonawanda at 4 p.m. Wednesday, after the two-day strike ended at 4 a.m. Recalls also began at Delphi Corp. in Lockport, a GM supplier that had begun to slow production, threatening 2,200 production jobs.

“We were happy it didn’t go any longer than it did,” said Wallace Wedington, chairman of United Auto Workers Local 774 in Tonawanda. Work had returned to normal Wednesday afternoon, he said.

But the GM strike is officially in recess, not over. The tentative deal faces approval by 73,000 rank-and-file members in voting expected this weekend.

Radical as the deal is, observers and union officials expect it will win approval. The two-day strike shows that union negotiators pushed GM hard. Plus, a signing bonus of $3,000 per worker doesn’t hurt.

Changes this big would have been unthinkable if not for the crisis that cost the U.S. auto industry $15 billion in combined losses last year. Talks at Ford and Chrysler have been awaiting the outcome of the GM deal. Ford, employer of 1,000 UAW members at its parts plant in Hamburg, is expected to closely follow the GM deal.

Investors seemed to bet that the contract will go through, driving GM stock up $3.22, to $37.64 on Wednesday.

Will a cost-saving contract halt the decline of a U.S. industry battered by global forces?

GM worker Michael Houck of Alden said he hopes so. “Maybe in the next contract we’ll say ‘OK, you’re doing so good, how about giving us some raises?’ ”

In addition to the signing bonus, the four-year contract contains annual bonuses — instead of raises — that total 10 percent of pay. The one-time payments don’t increase base wages, holding overtime and other wage-linked compensation constant.

Both sides exited the talks claiming victory.

“This agreement helps us close the fundamental competitive gaps that exist in our business,” GM chief executive Rick Wagoner said. With lower costs, the company will invest significantly in the United States and maintain a “strong manufacturing presence,” he said.

UAW President Ron Gettelfinger said the union got the job guarantees it sought, without being specific. The details are officially secret until members vote, but the statements indicate that GM will make future vehicles in the U.S. instead of shifting production to Mexico, Korea and other low-wage markets.

Attrition in the auto industry has hit the UAW, and the Buffalo economy, hard. Locally, the UAW lost 6,500 members at auto plants from 2000 to 2005, a 45 percent drop, according to reports filed with the U.S. Department of Labor. Nationally the union’s membership has plunged by two-thirds since 1970.

The trust fund, or VEBA, for voluntary employees beneficiary association, would reportedly be funded for 70 percent of its future liability by GM. It will have sufficient backing to pay out benefits for 80 years, Gettelfinger said.

That means it will save GM billions in expected costs, while giving the UAW firmer control of future benefits. Even if GM should go bankrupt, some level of benefit funding would be locked in.

“From the UAW’s perspective, I’d rather have $35 billion guaranteed than a promise of $51 [billion],” said Arthur Wheaton, instructor at the Cornell University School of Industrial and Labor Relations.

Still, questions surround how much the deal saves GM, and how the fund is structured. Some of the funding will come from GM’s over-funded pension plan, according to reports.

“I don’t like that at all,” GM worker Houck said. Other members said that making the UAW responsible for benefits will increase divisions within the ranks.

If approved, the deal will leave GM free to turn to an increasingly cloudy automotive market. It entered the talks seeking to cut what it says is a $25 hourly premium in its labor costs — wages and benefits — compared with those of foreignbased competitors operating in the U.S. But its sales are under pressure from high gas prices and a bumpy economy, as well as from Japanese “transplants.”

Among the most exposed vehicles are the large trucks and SUVs that GM counts on for operating profit. And the possibility of increased federal fuel economy standards adds to the uncertainty.

“No job is safe,” Wheaton said, “if GM can’t figure out how to sell more cars in the market or make money on them.”

WCFCourier.com, Wednesday, September 26, 2007

WCFCourier.com, Wednesday, September 26, 2007
http://www.wcfcourier.com/articles/2007/09/26/business/local/171b16572298459786257362004cb3eb.txt

GM is no John Deere, Waterloo-born labor expert says

WATERLOO --- General Motors is no John Deere.

So says Ron Seeber, a Waterloo-born labor relations expert. He said the issues surrounding the labor dispute and strike settled today between the United Auto Workers and General Motors shouldn't have immediate implications on the UAW's relationship with Deere & Co.

"They're such a well-run company compared to the auto industry," Seeber, of Cornell University in New York, said of Deere.

Deere, the ag equipment industry leader, is in a much better competitive position in its field than the major U.S. automakers are in theirs, he said.

While GM and Ford are competing with overseas automakers for the domestic market, Deere is "still exporting to a good share of the world," Seeber said.

"But at the same time, there's a warning here for all of us in the whole country on this health insurance issue," Seeber said. "It's true for any employer which made the kind of open-ended promises to people who retired. GM did, and Deere did also --- 'We're going to fund you and your spouse forever on our health insurance.' It turns out that was a pretty expensive promise.

"It made sense when there was one retiree for every four working UAW members," Seeber said, but there's now more than a quarter million UAW-affiliated GM retirees and only 75,000 workers.

Seeber, a former Deere Waterloo worker and UAW Local 838 member here, is a professor and associate dean of Cornell's Institute for Industrial Relations, and the university's vice provost for land grant affairs. He is the son of Jack Seeber, a former Waterloo City Council member who served as president of UAW Local 838 in Waterloo from 1971-75 and was a leader in the local and its retirees group for more than 40 years until his death in 1995. Local 838 is the largest UAW local within Deere and in Iowa, with about 2,700 members.

Job security and health insurance were key issues in the GM-UAW talks --- issues which the union and Deere tried to address in their current contract.

Deere implemented significant changes in its health insurance coverage under the current agreement with the UAW which expires in 2009, instituting a network of health care providers for its coverage in 2004 which forced some insurees to change health care providers.

Deere last week also announced changes for some 5,000 nonunion salaried retirees. Current retirees who are not yet eligible for Medicare will now be eligible for programs that include Health Savings Accounts (HSA). Both retirees and Deere contribute to these accounts, which have tax advantages and can be used for current or future health care expenses.

Other provisions of the Deere-UAW contract also called for more outsourced work to be brought back into Deere plants, which local company and union officials have said is happening, as evidenced by a recent spate of hiring at Deere's Waterloo operations.

According to UAW Local 838, Deere's Waterloo operations have seen a net increase of 190 union-wage workers since its current labor agreement was reached with the UAW in 2003. Company officials also reported a slight increase in Deere's salaried work force. Deere currently employs about 4,800 people in Waterloo.

The United Auto Workers and General Motors Corp. reached agreement at about 3 a.m. Wednesday to a tentative contract that puts the responsibility for retirees' health care into the union's hands, ending a two-day strike, the first national strike against an automaker in 31 years.

GM and the UAW confirmed that the deal creates a GM-funded, UAW-run trust to administer retiree health care --- which Seeber said could put the union "in a really bad position" if it is inadequately funded and the union has to make some decisions on coverage.

The two sides gave no other details, but a person briefed on the contract told The Associated Press that it also would give workers bonuses and lump-sum payments. The person requested anonymity because the contract talks are private.

The contract must be reviewed by local UAW presidents and will then be subject to a vote of GM's 73,000 rank-and-file members. The agreement is expected to set a pattern for contracts at Ford Motor Co. and Chrysler LLC.

Contact Pat Kinney at (319) 291-1484 or Pat.Kinney@wcfcourier.com.

The Post-Standard, Wednesday, September 26, 2007

The Post-Standard, Wednesday, September 26, 2007
http://blog.syracuse.com/news/2007/09/many_new_immigrants_to_onondag.html
Many new immigrants to Onondaga County lack job skills, report says


Posted by Charley Hannagan September 26, 2007 6:49PM
Categories: Breaking News, Business News
A report issued today by Cornell University found that many of the latest immigrants to Onondaga County speak little English, are illiterate in their own language and have no job skills when compared with previous immigrants.

At the same time, many employers are ill-equipped to handle those needs, according to the report "Bridging the Gap: Training Needs Assessment of the Immigrant Workforce in Onondaga County, N.Y."

The report looked only at workers at the lower end of the economy. It states that it is not a random survey, which may have affected its conclusions.

The report's conclusions are bad news for those who believe an immigrant workforce could ease a looming labor shortage.

"For the most part, these immigrants, refugees and migrants from Puerto Rico will not be able to satisfy the demands for the higher-level skills that will fuel what regional planners expect to be a knowledge-based economy," the report said.

The county's Department of Economic Development commissioned Maralyn Edid of Cornell University's Industrial and Labor Relations School to write the report.

Edid, a senior extension associate at Cornell, met with immigrants and refugees from Burma, Somalia, Burundi, Liberia and Mexico, as well as ethnic Russian Turks, beginning in January. She also interviewed people who moved to the area from Puerto Rico. Most of those interviewed were unemployed women.

She also interviewed employers and agencies who provide services to immigrants and refugees.

Detroit Free Press (Michigan), September 26, 2007, Wednesday

Copyright 2007 Detroit Free Press
Detroit Free Press (Michigan)

Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Business News

September 26, 2007 Wednesday

SECTION: BUSINESS AND FINANCIAL NEWS

HEADLINE: UAW leader backs health fund

BYLINE: Katie Merx and Tim Higgins, Detroit Free Press

BODY:
Sep. 26--On the second day his members picketed General Motors Corp. facilities across the nation, UAW Presi-dent Ron Gettelfinger said Tuesday the creation of a retiree health care trust would be in the best interest of his mem-bers and he hoped it would be part of the new labor contract being negotiated with the automaker.

Gettelfinger's rare public statements appeared to be part of the union's efforts to increase pressure on the automaker and to better define its position publicly regarding why the UAW launched its first nationwide strike against GM in 37 years.

Although he said no one wanted a strike, "it may be a good thing because it will bring an end to this thing quicker -- we hope."

The impact of the strike, which involves 73,000 GM workers, began to ripple across the auto industry Tuesday with some Canadian GM plants idling, auto dealers missing service parts and suppliers laying off workers.

Talks between GM and the UAW continued Tuesday, 11 days after the previous 4-year contract was set to expire Sept. 14.

People familiar with the talks said the two sides discussed on Tuesday health care for active workers; a two-tier wage system in which those who do non-production work would be compensated at a lower level, and tapping into GM's overfunded pension fund, an idea analysts have said might make UAW members more receptive to the creation of a health care trust fund.
Most are hoping for a short-term strike, believing it will be less damaging to all parties.
But Aaron Sandlin, 33, an employee at the GM truck assembly plant in Pontiac, said workers "will be out on the picket lines for as long as it takes to get GM to realize the true value of its hourly workforce."

UAW Local 276 near Arlington, Texas, told members Tuesday through its Web page that the local's leaders had "been advised that 'some movement is being made' but it is still moving at a slow pace."

Gettelfinger reiterated his stance Tuesday that the creation of a voluntary employee beneficiary association, or VEBA, to rid GM's books of more than $50 billion in retiree health care costs was not the reason the union took to the picket line at 11 a.m. Monday.

"The VEBA, that's off the table for right now, and it was prior to us going out on strike," Gettelfinger said during a radio interview on WJR-AM (760). "In all honesty, in this day and age, a VEBA is in our best interest and I am looking forward to an opportunity to make that case sometime, I hope as part of this agreement, that we can get this ironed out."

Job security is the No. 1 issue for the union in the talks. In exchange for giving in to the creation of a VEBA, which the union likely would grant at a significant discount to GM, the UAW is believed to want commitments on saving U.S. jobs and landing company investments in U.S. plants and new products.

"The union feels it was willing to accept a journey into uncharted waters on one of the most pivotal items to auto-workers -- their health care security, particularly when they're retirees. But when it came to seeing something reciprocal it wasn't there," said Harley Shaiken, a labor expert from the University of California, Berkeley.

"I suspect from the union's point of view, it's akin to being told you've got to help bail the water out of the ship when there is no guarantee you'll be on the ship when it is done."
In a new memo to local union leaders, the UAW's national leadership reminded members of the sacrifices the union has made in recent years.

The UAW modified its formula for cost-of-living increases in 2003 and changed the health care plan in 2005 in part by deferring a 3 percent wage increase to help pay for coverage. GM cut its workforce by 34,410 in a special attrition program in 2005.

It was during negotiations over that mid-contract health care concession that Gettelfinger said he first proposed the creation of a VEBA to rid the company of its long-term health obligations.
Gettelfinger estimates the plan would have saved the company $2 billion annually but GM rejected the idea of a full VEBA, going with a partial one instead.

"We are not unreasonable," he said. "We stepped up. We've offered things to the company ... that they basically pushed back on, and some of it we think would have been in their best interest."

Gettelfinger declined to elaborate on what specific issues the two sides are at odds over.
CSM Worldwide, an automotive consulting firm, issued a report this week that said core issues beyond health care costs include pensions, investment in U.S. facilities and workplace rules.
The so-called jobs bank is a controversial issue, a way for hourly workers to continue to get paid even if an auto-maker no longer needs them. Automakers are sometimes referred to as original equipment manufacturers, or OEMs.

"As further capacity reductions are made, the OEMs will seek to rewrite language to preclude idled workers from the costly jobs bank unless the layoff is temporary," CSM said in the note to clients. "At issue is the ability for manufac-turers to win the flexibility to relocate employees to facilities over an extended distance."

In addition, CSM said GM wants two-tier wage agreements "to alleviate some of the 'manufacturing' disadvantage."

GM and the other U.S. automakers would like to cut the average wage-and-benefits costs of their workers to be in line with those at rival Toyota Motor Corp. The Detroit automakers are estimated to pay between $20 and $30 more per hour than foreign automakers that manufacture vehicles in the United States. It's believed that a new VEBA would cut that gap by about half.

From GM's standpoint, the negotiations now are believed to focus on where to get the rest of the cost savings in or-der to maintain GM manufacturing jobs in the United States.
GM, which lost $12.5 billion over the past two years, has been trying aggressively to cut costs not only in North American operations but around the world.

"I was just at a conference in Germany with all of the European unions for General Motors and they called it the 'horror catalog' as how General Motors dealt with them," said Arthur Wheaton, a labor expert from Cornell University.

He said GM is trying to outsource many jobs in an effort to dramatically reduce pay. "They are talking about eve-ryone who is not a production" worker with "hands on the car," Wheaton said.

Global Insight estimated Tuesday that GM has a 65-day supply of vehicles on hand, citing Autodata numbers. CSM Worldwide figured GM is losing the production of more than 11,000 vehicles per day, a figure that jumps to 18,000 if the strike continues past 72 hours.
A short-term strike might cost GM less than $1 billion, but a two-month strike could cost $15 billion, Lehman Brothers said.

Rod Lache, a Deutsche Bank analyst in New York, wrote in a report to investors that the strike could cost GM $880 million a week, Bloomberg News said.
GM shares dipped 32 cents, or 0.9 percent, to $34.42 Tuesday.

By Katie Merx and Tim Higgins
To see more of the Detroit Free Press, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.freep.com. Copyright (c) 2007, Detroit Free Press Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email tmsre-prints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Per-missions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA.

LOAD-DATE: September 26, 2007

National Public Radio (NPR), September 26, 2007, Wednesday

Copyright 2007 National Public Radio (R)
All Rights Reserved
National Public Radio (NPR)

SHOW: Morning Edition 11:00 AM EST

September 26, 2007 Wednesday

HEADLINE: Labor Strikes Growing Far Less Common [DP]

ANCHORS: RENEE MONTAGNE

BODY:
RENEE MONTAGNE, host:
And a strike like the one against GM is rare these days. The Bureau of Labor Statistics says last year, there were just 20 strikes and lockouts involving workforces of more than a thousand people. And, of course, in this case with GM, it was 73,000 workers. To compare, in 1952, there were 470 strikes. As the influence of labor unions has waned, strikes have become less effective, and labor unions are relying on other strategies to hold their ground.

NPR's Jim Zarroli reports.

JIM ZARROLI: Earlier this year, a video appeared on YouTube that caused a lot of embarrassment for JPMorgan Chase. The video showed a man going through the trash outside a Chase branch in New York City and finding lots of discarded documents containing data about customers.

(Soundbite of YouTube video)

Unidentified Man: His Social Security number is here, as well as his date of birth. There's a business credit applica-tion here as well.

ZARROLI: The video was created by the Service Employees International Union, which was trying to unionize se-curity workers at the bank. At one time, unions relied heavily on the threat of strikes to make their presence felt.

But Iain Gold, who directs Strategic Research and Campaigns for the Teamsters, says over time, the courts have made it easier for companies to replace striking workers.

Mr. IAIN GOLD (Director, Strategic Research and Campaigns Department, Teamsters): All that stuff has tipped the balance so far in management's favor that unions are very reticent - and it was always sort of a last resort, anyway - but very reticent to go down that path.

ZARROLI: At the same time, the ranks of unions have thinned relative to the workforce as a whole.

Richard Hurd
, professor of labor relations at Cornell, University says with their influence diminishing, unions have had to switch gears.
Professor RICHARD HURD (Director and Professor, Industrial and Labor Relations, Cornell University): Unions have determined that if they're going to have influence on corporate decisions and reach agreements that are beneficial to them, that what they need to do is find alternative forms of leverage.

ZARROLI: Hurd says unions are pursuing two basic strategies. One is to form partnerships with companies. It's a kind of a bargain: The companies agreed to let the unions organize. The unions try to act in a non-adversarial manner. But when that fails, many unions have tried to become more aggressive at public relations. Most big unions employ researchers to dig up dirt.
And Iain Gold of the Teamster says unions have learned how to use what they find against companies.

Mr. GOLD: The more stones you look under in a corporation's overall behavior, you're likely to find many things that the public isn't aware of.

ZARROLI: For instance, when unions were attempting to organize hotel workers in Houston, they were able to find data from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. The numbers indicated that many hotel maids were being injured by lifting heavy mattresses. Hurd says after the data was published, hotel owners agreed to change work rules and allow housekeepers to work in teams.

Dr. HURD
: They were able to negotiate on terms that were favorable to them by using corporate campaigns and not having to resort to a strike.


ZARROLI: Many unions have also bought stock in companies as a way of buying a platform at shareholder meet-ings. That makes it easier to exert pressure on big public pensions funds that may own shares in the companies.

Linda Tran is a spokeswoman for the SEIU.

Ms. LINDA TRAN (Spokeswoman, Service Employees International Union): If, you know, union members' money is going into a pension fund that has shares in a company that is intimidating workers or preventing them from forming a union, that's an issue that definitely gets raise.

ZARROLI: The SEIU has seen its rank increase, but union membership as a whole hasn't increased much in recent years. Most unions continued to operate from a position of weakness, not strength, especially when they represent large pools of low-skilled workers who can be easily replaced. Unions know that, which is why they've had to search for new ways to accomplish their goals.

Jim Zarroli, NPR News, New York.
MONTAGNE: And, again, the nationwide strike against General Motors is over. The United Autoworkers says it has reached a tentative contract agreement with the automaker. That deal must still be approved by the rank and file, but the union says its workers are off the picket line and will be on the production line this morning.

LOAD-DATE: September 26, 2007

Buffalo News (New York), September 26, 2007, Wednesday

Copyright 2007 The Buffalo News
All Rights Reserved
Buffalo News (New York)

September 26, 2007, Wednesday
CENTRAL EDITION

SECTION: LOCAL; Pg. B2

HEADLINE: Strategy offered to address blight

BYLINE: By Mark Sommer - NEWS STAFF REPORTER

BODY:

A new think tank has released a report recommending comprehensive strategies to address Buffalo's poverty and blight through housing reforms.

The Partnership for the Public Good hopes to bring progressive ideas to the forefront in discussions about economic development in Buffalo. Its members are PUSH Buffalo, Buffalo First!, Coalition for Economic Justice, Buffalo ReUse and WNY Homeless Alliance, plus faculty from the University at Buffalo Law School and Cornell University's School of Industrial and Labor Relations.

"We think a revitalized Buffalo is one that will focus on cultivating the assets we have in the neighborhoods and in our communities, as well as addressing the root crises we see, particularly in regard to poverty and vacancy," said Alli-son Duwe, executive director of the Coalition for Economic Justice.

The report, "Integrated Approach to Fighting Blight and Poverty in Buffalo's Low-income Neighborhoods," calls for significant investment in rehabilitating housing. To promote community renewal, the report calls for a comprehen-sive assessment of abandoned parcels as well as a strategy for thousands of demolitions and resulting green spaces.

"Weatherization is potentially a gold mine for low-income people," said Aaron Bartley, director of PUSH Buffalo. "Rather than paying $500 gas bills, a minimal investment from the state can literally cut utility bills in half and provide for a more economically viable neighborhood."
Emphasizing the link between low-paying jobs, blight and poverty, Bartley said the group's goals could be met by employing neighborhood residents with good-paying jobs.

"We desperately need living-wage employment in this West Side neighborhood, and also the East Side of Buffalo, and really throughout the city," Bartley said. "As everybody knows, we were recently named the second poorest city, and everything we deal with as neighborhood residents is directly correlated to the lack of living-wage jobs in our neighborhoods."

The news conference was held in front of a deteriorating house at 376 Rhode Island St., a symbol of neglect in re-cent years. The house until earlier this month was one of nearly 1,500 blighted properties under the control of a state agency for the past four years. The house was returned to the city.

The Partnership for the Public Good has produced the "Principles for a Revitalized Buffalo" and issued another re-port, "Achieving a Greater Buffalo," with detailed ideas for transitioning Buffalo toward a "greener, more just, more vibrant future."

The Partnership for the Public Good helped plan and develop the two-day conference, "The High Road Runs Through the City: Advocating for Economic Justice at the Local Level," which is open to the public and begins today in the Hyatt Regency Buffalo.
e-mail: msommer@buffnews.com

LOAD-DATE: September 26, 2007

WNED-AM 970 NEWS, September 26, 2007, Wednesday

WNED-AM 970 NEWS
September 26, 2007, Wednesday
Deal Reached; GM Employees Back to Work


BUFFALO (2007-09-26) After two days on the picket line, employees at GM's Powertrain Plant in the Town of Tonawanda are going back to work.

The United Auto Workers nationwide strike against the automaker came to end early this morning. The UAW announced just after 3:00 AM that a tentative deal has been reached with GM.

One of the stumbling blocks that led to the strike was over healthcare costs. Union officials are being tight lipped for now, but according to the Associated Press, the agreement shifts GM's retiree healthcare burden to the UAW through a company funded trust.

Cornell University's Director of Labor Studies Arthur Wheaton says that should be good news for GM's workers.

"Now you don't have to worry about a General Motors bankruptcy or anything else to impact that, because it's kind of a promisary note," said Wheaton.

The deal reached between the UAW and GM also reportedly includes a lump-sum payment and bonuses for workers.

The tentative contract must still be approved by local UAW presidents and voted on by the rank and file, including the nearly 1,500 at GM's plant on River Road.

WBEN 930 AM (Buffalo), September 26, Wednesday

WBEN 930 AM (Buffalo), September 26, Wednesday
Arthur Wheaton
was on WBEN Radio on Wednesday, September 26th discussing the UAW-GM strike settlement.
http://www.wben.com/

WGRZ.com (Channel 2 News) Buffalo, Tuesday, September 25, 2007

WGRZ.com (Channel 2 News), Tuesday, September 25, 2007
Arthur Wheaton
was on WGRZ Channel 2 News in Buffalo on Tuesday, September 25th discussing the UAW-GM strike with Claudine Ewing.
http://www.wgrz.com/

WIVB News Channel 4, September 25, 2007, Tuesday

WVIB.com(News Channel 4), September 25, 2007, Tuesday
UAW Strike Effects Other Companies

http://www.wivb.com/Global/story.asp?s=7127435
Sep 25, 2007 06:30 PM EDT

(Buffalo, NY, September 25, 2007) - - All eyes are on the GM strike as the ripple effect is already being felt. News 4's George Richert begins our team coverage from the picket line in the Town of Tonawanda.

GM employee, "The american dream is not dead, the union is not dead."

Current and former GM workers walked the picket line together because they say it's about all of them.

Joe Guadagno, GM retiree, "Well, I'm so proud of my union brothers and reps for finally mustering the courage to stand up for retirees and healthcare and the benefits that were promised us."

The United Auto Workers say this is mostly about healthcare for retirees and job security in the future.

Peter Masich, President of UAW #774, "Our jobs have been leaving this country, are leaving."

The jobs are leaving because the cars can be made more cheaply in other countries. Have they had it too good; are the days numbered for $25 an hour manufacturing jobs, with pensions and guaranteed benefits. Union and non-union workers across america better hope not according to Labor Relations Expert Arthur Wheaton.

Arthur Wheaton, Cornell University's International Labor Relations School, "They're the ones who brought you the weekend. There is no requirement for vacations, etc. It was negotiated by organized labor, much of which by the UAW. The UAW is fighting not just for GM, but Ford and Chrysler, whatever GM employees get will be dependent on what UAW gets."

WBEN 930 AM, September 25, Tuesday

WBEN 930 AM
Arthur Wheaton
was on WBEN Radio on Tuesday, September 25th discussing the UAW-GM strike.
http://www.wben.com/

Christian Science Monitor, September 25, 2007, Tuesday

Copyright 2007 The Christian Science Publishing Society
All Rights Reserved
Christian Science Monitor

September 25, 2007, Tuesday

SECTION: USA; Pg. 1

HEADLINE: Smaller but savvier, labor draws '08 Democrats

BYLINE: Ariel Sabar Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor

DATELINE: Washington

BODY:
Think "American Idol: Organized Labor Edition."

To reach the final round of judging for an endorsement from the Service Employees International Union, Hillary Rodham Clinton, John Edwards, and Barack Obama had to survive a series of trials: videotaped interviews with the rank and file, speeches to the union's political wing, submission of a detailed healthcare plan, and "Walk a Day in My Shoes" events in which six Democratic hopefuls shadowed a janitor, teacher, nurse, or other union worker.

The hunt for the union's endorsement culminates Tuesday with speeches at a Chicago convention and is part of an open and aggressive courtship of labor unseen on the campaign trail for more than two decades, labor leaders and ana-lysts say.

Senator Obama joined striking workers outside a Chicago hotel in July and later led Nevada culinary workers in chants of "Fired Up, Ready to Go." Senator Clinton told a firefighters' union in March, "It is absolutely essential to the way America works that people be given the right to organize and bargain collectively." Mr. Edwards, a former senator from North Carolina, has campaigned for minimum-wage initiatives in a half dozen states and said at the AFL-CIO de-bate last month that he had walked 200 picket lines in the past two years.

"There's little question that all of the candidates are much more open, aggressive, and comfortable talking about and embracing the labor movement," says Harold Schaitberger, president of the 281,000-member International Association of Fire Fighters, which recently endorsed Sen. Christopher Dodd (D) of Connecticut. "In the past, candidates would be more inclined to talk about 'worker issues,' 'rights of employees,' 'the middle class.' The word 'union' or 'labor move-ment' - that wasn't as much in their vocabulary."

Stephanie Mueller, a spokeswoman for the 1.9 million-member Service Employees International Union, says, "We've never had this kind of experience before with candidates."

Talk of unions fell from favor, analysts say, after the AFL-CIO's endorsement of Walter Mondale in the 1984 presidential race drew charges from rivals that he was beholden to "special interests."

By 1992, when Democrats looked as if they might again seize the White House, "there was a feeling at least among the 'New Democrats' " - a centrist group that included Bill Clinton - "that labor was out of touch and was part of the old liberal line that had lost them elections in the past," says Peter Francia, a political scientist at East Carolina University in Greenville, N.C., and author of "The Future of Organized Labor in American Politics."

Labor's political bounce this year comes as union membership continues to slide. Some 12 percent of US workers belonged to unions in 2006, down from more than 20 percent in 1983, according to federal figures.

To counter the loss, unions have devoted a growing share of their budgets to political activity. With new high-tech tools to communicate with members and identify the undecided, they are more effective than ever at propelling mem-bers to the polls, say labor leaders and outside experts.

Some 24 percent of voters in the 2004 presidential election were from union households, up from 19 percent in 1992, according to exit poll data. In 2006, a record 74 percent of AFL-CIO members who voted backed a union-endorsed candidate, says Karen Ackerman, the organization's political director.

The attention from presidential candidates this year is not surprising, she says: "It comes from the fact that we have a stronger, bigger political program and that over the last several cycles, we've proven we can get out the vote."

The AFL-CIO announced Friday that it would spend a record $53 million and deploy 200,000 volunteers to mobi-lize voters for next year's races. "Our members are building an army to make more calls, knock on more doors, and turn out more voters than ever," Gerald McEntee, chair of the AFL-CIO's political committee and president of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, said in a statement.

So far this year, Clinton has picked up national endorsements from five unions; Edwards, four; and Dodd, one.

The AFL-CIO is unlikely to reach the necessary two-thirds support of members to make an endorsement in the primary. That makes the SEIU endorsement one of the primary season's plum prizes. "If one of the candidates got that kind of boost, it could make a significant difference," says Richard Hurd, a labor studies professor at Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y.

In 2004, the Democratic candidates with the most labor endorsements - then-Rep. Richard Gephardt and former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean - flamed out early. This time, many unions are putting candidates through a lengthier set of interviews and public forums.

"We're going to take the temperature and pulse of our membership more this time around," says Terry O'Sullivan, general president of the 500,000-member Laborers' International Union of North America, which endorsed Mr. Gephardt in 2004.

To stay relevant, a few unions have grown pragmatic about their members' political diversity. A third of the mem-bers of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers are Republican, and for the first time in its 119-year history, it endorsed a Republican - former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, the only GOP candidate to appear at its forum - as well as a Democrat.

"For the last seven years, we've been shut out from having any contact with this White House," says its communi-cations director, Rick Sloan. "Whether you agree with [Republican leaders] or not, the inability to have any conversa-tion at all is a disaster."

In Philadelphia in July, seven Democratic candidates and one Republican - Mr. Huckabee again - spoke at an an-nual meeting of the National Education Association, which has yet to make an endorsement. Never before in memory had candidates appeared at the meeting without an advance endorsement, says Reg Weaver, president of the 3.2 million-member teachers' union.
Still, Mr. Weaver brushes aside the notion that candidates are significantly more attuned to unions. "I don't know if they're paying more attention to labor," he says. "They're paying attention to anybody who has a large block of votes."
(c) Copyright 2007. The Christian Science Monitor

LOAD-DATE: September 24, 2007

Chicago Sun Times, September 24, 2007, Monday

Copyright 2007 Chicago Sun-Times, Inc.
All Rights Reserved
Chicago Sun Times

September 24, 2007 Monday
Final Edition

SECTION: FINANCIAL; Pg. 53

HEADLINE: 2 years after labor split, Change to Win reflects; Boosting Membership Remains Job No. 1

BYLINE: Francine Knowles, The Chicago Sun-Times

BODY:
Two years after its controversial birth, Change to Win labor federation is making good on its pledge to reinvigorate the labor movement with more expansive and comprehensive organizing targeting tens of thousands of workers, its leaders contend.

But as the group prepares to kick off its second convention here Tuesday, those efforts haven't yet produced a pay-off in increased union membership or deeper penetration in existing business sectors.

Change to Win, formed by seven unions that broke from the AFL-CIO after disagreements on how to best organize, says it is targeting several major organizing campaigns:

- 90,000 ports drivers in California, Florida and Washington, led by the Teamsters.
- More than 30,000 school bus drivers led by the Teamsters and Service Employees International Union.
- More than 10,000 Bashas' grocery store workers in Phoenix, led by the United Food and Commercial Workers.
- 60,000 residential home construction workers in Arizona, California and Nevada, led by the Laborers' Interna-tional Union.
- Thousands of hotel workers across the country, led by Unite Here.

The campaigns have received assistance from Change to Win's strategic organizing center, which receives $12 mil-lion of the federation's $16 million budget.

"We've been focused on major campaigns in our core industries, and other unions have been supporting those ef-forts so we can do campaigns bigger," said Anna Burger, chair of the federation.

The federation's affiliates are committing several hundred million dollars annually to organizing, in addition to teaming up on campaigns, said Tom Woodruff, head of the organizing center.
Last month 300 organizers from all of the affiliates participated in a Teamsters blitz at the Port of Los Angeles, contacting 15,000 workers during a one-week period, said federation Executive Director Gregory Tarpinian.

In the Chicago area, the United Food and Commercial Workers Local 1546 President Ken Boyd says the union has received help from the Teamsters in organizing food-industry workers here.
"You see cooperation among these various unions," said Robert Bruno, an associate professor of labor at the Uni-versity of Illinois at Chicago. "But they promised a centralization of resources and of strategizing, and while on the plus side I do see cases of that, there's certainly far less of it than was promised two years ago."

Kate Bronfenbrenner
, director of labor education research at Cornell University, shared similar views.

"If you look at the organizing numbers, there has been no significant change in who's organizing and who's not," she said.


The unions that were making the most significant gains organizing before and after Change to Win was formed are the same unions, she said. SEIU and Unite Here, which represents hotel, restaurant, textile and laundry workers, remain the most aggressive.

But Woodruff and other labor leaders said the two-year-old organization and its affiliates have been focused on put-ting the infrastructure in place to support bigger and better campaigns. That is key to increasing density, they said, add-ing that more campaigns will be forthcoming.

"What we're seeing now in all our affiliates is in many cases a doubling or tripling of the number of people working in their strategic research operations, said Tarpinian.

Three years ago the Teamsters had fewer than 20 organizers on the ground from the national union, today it em-ploys 200 such organizers, noted Tarpinian. The union's membership, which stood at nearly 1.4 million at the end of 2006, organized more than 20,000 new members last year, and is on track to double that this year, said spokeswoman Leigh Strope.

The Laborers', meanwhile, have committed to increasing per capita payments by 25 cents per hour by 2009 to fund organizing. That will create more than $100 million a year for organizing to help it achieve its goal of boosting its membership by 20 percent over the next five years, said General President Terence O'Sullivan.

At UFCW 1546, one third of the budget now goes to organizing, up from about 10 percent three years ago, said Boyd.

"We're spending more money on organizing, developing and training organizers, developing capacity to do re-search, and to understand our industries in a much larger way," said Burger, in assessing the group's progress. "That has been very dramatic."

Henry Tamarin, president of Unite Here Local 1, says it's premature to judge the success of the still young federa-tions, but noted the clock is ticking. Indeed, union membership has continued its downward slide, falling from 12.5 per-cent of wage and salary workers to 12 percent last year.

"At the end of the day, the only real measure that can apply is whether we have more workers organized and greater density in the industries that we represent," Tamarin said. "We can get an A for effort, but that doesn't change the equa-tion."

STEPS TOWARD 50 MILLION
The seven-union affiliates of Change to Win labor federation have a long-term goal of organizing 50 million work-ers
What have they done to help achieve that?

Targeted industries that can't be outsourced, including construction, retail, hotels and hospitality, food production, manufacturing, transportation, health care and real estate.
Committed 75 percent of the federation's resources to organizing through the establishment of a strategic organiz-ing center.

Each affiliate has developed an organizing plan to bring about net growth in each of their core industries by next year. That would translate into 250,000 newly organized workers next year.
Affiliates have committed more resources to strategic research and training more organizers.
Put in place capital stewardship programs focused on using union pension funds to help pressure employers.

Focused on organizing through majority card-check instead of National Labor Relations Board secret ballot elec-tions.

GRAPHIC:
Photo: Scott Stewart, Sun-Times; Helping organize and raise the pay and benefits of thousands of hotel workers across the country, in an effort led by Unite Here, is among Change to Win's campaigns. ;
Photo: Brian Kersey, AP; "We've been focused on major campaigns in our core industries, and other unions have been supporting those efforts, so we can do campaigns bigger," said the federation's chair, Anna Burger
Color Photo: Henry Tamarin, president of Unite Here Local 1. ;

LOAD-DATE: September 25, 2007

Copyright 2007 HT Media Ltd., September 24, 2007, Monday

Copyright 2007 HT Media Ltd.
All Rights Reserved
Targeted News Service

September 24, 2007 Monday 9:31 PM EST


HEADLINE: TRAVELPORT RENEWS PARTNERSHIP WITH CORNELL CENTER FOR HOSPITALITY RE-SEARCH

BYLINE: Targeted News Service

DATELINE: ITHACA, N.Y.

BODY:
Cornell University's School of Hotel Administration issued the following press release:
Global travel distributor Travelport has renewed its partnership with Cornell's Center for Hospitality Research. One of the foremost operators of global distribution system (GDS) businesses for the travel industry, Travelport is known through its Worldspan and Galileo brands, and owns a majority share of Orbitz Worldwide. In addition to finan-cial support as a partner with the center, Travelport's executive vice president of human resources, Jo-Anne Kruse, will continue to serve on the center's advisory board.

"Jo-Anne Kruse has been a great addition to our advisory board for more than three years" noted David Sherwyn, academic director of the Center for Hospitality Research. "We are delighted that Travelport has renewed its partnership, as Jo-Anne is an executive who brings strong leadership on the importance of human resources to the hospitality indus-try."

A graduate of Cornell University's School of Industrial and Labor Relations, Kruse
points to the center's strong re-cord of producing industry-related research. She added: "Cornell's Center for Hospitality Research provides a great ser-vice to all segments of the hospitality industry, and I am delighted that Travelport is a part of that research agenda."
Contact: Jennifer Macera, 607/255-3101, js372@cornell.edu

LOAD-DATE: September 25, 2007

Staten Island Advance (New York), September 23, 2007, Sunday

Copyright 2007 Advance Publications, Inc.
All Rights Reserved
Staten Island Advance (New York)

September 23, 2007 Sunday

SECTION: EDITORIAL; Pg. D06

HEADLINE: Michael Naughton, Aileen Calcagni

BODY:
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. - Manhattan residents Aileen O'Leary Calcagni and Michael Patrick Naughton were mar-ried Sept. 8 in the Church of the Immaculate Conception, Westhampton Beach, L.I. Monsignor Robert Ritchie of St. Patrick's Cathedral, Manhattan, celebrated the afternoon nuptial mass. A reception followed in Atlantica, at the West-hampton (L.I.) Bath and Tennis Club.

The bride is the daughter of Mary and William Calcagni of Richmond. The bridegroom is the son of Mary and Thomas Naughton of New Hyde Park, L.I.

Escorted by her parents, the bride chose Erin Tobin as the maid of honor. The bridesmaids were Tanya Macaluso-Marsh, Lori Smith and Laura Dalton.

Michael Isoldi was the best man. The ushers were Michael Calcagni, Sean Carolan, Joseph Wagner, Steven Pumillo, Shawn Schomaker and Angelo Fuschetto

Mrs. Naughton is a graduate of St. Joseph by-the-Sea High School, Huguenot. She earned a
bachelor of science de-gree in industrial and labor relations from Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y., where she was named to the dean's list and joined Kappa Kappa Gamma Sorority.
She earned a juris doctorate from St. John's University, School of Law, Queens, and is an associate counsel with the Office of the General Counsel of New York State United Teachers, Manhattan.

Mr. Naughton is a graduate of Chaminade High School, Mineola, L.I. He earned a bachelor of arts degree in eco-nomics and history from Binghamton (N.Y.) University, where he joined Chi Phi Fraternity, and a juris doctorate from Hofstra University School of Law, Hempstead, L.I. He is a partner with Brown, Gavalas & Fromm, Manhattan.

After a honeymoon to the Greek Islands, the newlyweds will live in Manhattan.
Artisan

GRAPHIC: Mr. and Mrs. Michael Naughton

LOAD-DATE: September 23, 2007

Detroit Free Press (Michigan), September 22, 2007, Saturday

Copyright 2007 Detroit Free Press
Detroit Free Press (Michigan)

Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Business News

September 22, 2007 Saturday

SECTION: BUSINESS AND FINANCIAL NEWS

HEADLINE: UAW, GM near health deal: Sides make headway in talks, establish general framework

BYLINE: Katie Merx, Detroit Free Press

BODY:
Sep. 22--The UAW and General Motors Corp. reached a general framework Friday on a retiree health care deal, overcoming the key obstacle to reaching agreement on a labor contract that could transform the domestic auto industry, people familiar with the talks said.

The breakthrough came the same day UAW President Ron Gettelfinger and UAW Vice President Cal Rapson ap-peared to soften their tone in a message marking the first public indication from Gettlefinger that strides are being made in the historic, drawn-out negotiations.
"We are pushing to accelerate the negotiating pace at all levels," Gettelfinger and Rapson said in a memo. "It is our desire to reach an agreement without a strike, and we have demonstrated this by staying at the bargaining table up to this point."

Talks on the health care trust known as a voluntary employee beneficiary association, or VEBA, and related eco-nomic issues paused earlier in the week when the UAW called in financial experts to evaluate a GM proposal.

But the logjam apparently broke loose Friday night, leading to what one person familiar with the talks described as a general framework on the VEBA.
Harley Shaiken, a labor expert at the University of California at Berkeley, said it was his understanding that the two sides had reached a "tentative agreement on the VEBA."
"What I've been picking up is that they are close to resolving the VEBA issue but that the final resolution of that is going to depend on what happens in other areas of the contract," Shaiken said.

Those matters include pay, pensions, signing bonus, active employee health care and investment in U.S. factories.

Shaiken said he believes the memo from UAW leaders illustrates a shift in the negotiations.
"What it indicates is there are still a lot of tough issues out there, but there is a constructive tone at the very end of these negotiations," he said.

People close to the talks already were interpreting Thursday's marathon bargaining session -- which ran past mid-night -- as a sign that the pace of bargaining had picked back up.
After sessions that lasted into the early morning hours the first few days after the contract was initially set to expire Sept. 14, talks wrapped up in the late evening earlier this week after GM
made a new VEBA proposal Monday.

On Tuesday, the UAW balked at the proposal and called in experts to evaluate financial aspects of the proposed health care trust. GM is pushing to transfer responsibility for its more than $50 billion in hourly retiree health care obli-gations to an independent retiree health care trust, but it wants to pay significantly less than the full amount to the trust to absolve itself of the obligation. People familiar with the talks have said GM wants to pay no more than 65% of the obligation. A board would run the trust with oversight from the union.

On Wednesday, people close to the talks said bargaining over all substantive financial issues had all but stopped, since those issues hinge on whether the parties agree to a VEBA. Without a VEBA trust, GM would be expected to push for more plant closures, significant workforce reductions and massive cuts to wages and benefits. Wages, benefits, bo-nuses and U.S. manufacturing commitments all hinge on whatever the details of the health care deal the two parties agree.

But the parties returned to the core financial issues late in the week after the UAW's financial advisers completed the bulk of the number crunching the union asked for to consider the latest VEBA proposals, people briefed on negotia-tions said.
Gettelfinger said union negotiators would work hard to the end.

"Our efforts to reach an agreement in this manner should in no way be construed as removing any of our options," he said in the memo.

The UAW is negotiating on behalf of 73,000 members who work for GM and 340,000 retirees and surviving spouses.

Earlier in the day, analysts called it encouraging that Gettelfinger had not named a strike deadline.

"The best thing is that there are no picket lines out front,"
Arthur Wheaton, a labor expert from Cornell University, said. "They are still at the table. If the UAW was getting nervous, it would post a deadline."

That's significant in a year when GM is asking the UAW to agree to historic changes to retiree health care benefits,
Wheaton said.

"If you are talking about $50 billion for this retiree health care issue, for this VEBA, it takes a while to say, 'Gee, is it going to be 60%, 65%, 70%?' Because each percentage is half-a-billion."


And the percentage at which GM would fund a VEBA is just one of the financial details on which the two parties need to reach agreement. They also need to agree on the amount of the liability; how long the automaker would have to pay into the trust; what combination of assets GM can use, and what, if any, future guarantees the parties would agree to in the event health care costs increase faster than expected or the nation adopts a universal health care system.

In extending more than one week with a lead company, known as a strike target, these talks have gone longer with-out a single tentative agreement than any in at least a quarter century.
"Considering the historic nature of these negotiations, this is probably the most important bargaining session the UAW has ever been in and the auto industry has ever been in," said Gary Chaison, a professor of industrial relations at Clark University in Worcester, Mass. "Some people want to call it transformational, I call it ultra-concessionary. The UAW is really being asked to give a lot."

Contact KATIE MERX at 313-222-8762 or kmerx@freepress.com
To see more of the Detroit Free Press, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.freep.com Copyright (c) 2007, Detroit Free Press Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email tmsre-prints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Per-missions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA.

Buffalo News (New York), September 21, 2007, Friday

Copyright 2007 The Buffalo News
All Rights Reserved
Buffalo News (New York)

September 21, 2007 Friday
CENTRAL EDITION

SECTION: LOCAL; Pg. D4

HEADLINE: Suzanne C. Schott, administrative assistant to several unions;
Oct. 21, 1948 -- Sept. 19, 2007

BODY:
Suzanne C. Schott once said: "Although I never entered a career of social work, I feel that I have had opportunities to serve people in many ways at each juncture of my life."

Ms. Schott, who had a long career as an administrative assistant for labor unions, died Wednesday in her Clarence Center home after a lengthy illness. She was 58.

Born in Buffalo, Ms. Schott was a lifelong resident of this area. Attending various colleges part-time, she earned an associate degree in labor relations in 1985 and, in 1999, received a labor studies certificate from Cornell University School of Industrial and Labor Relations.

She was an administrative assistant for Local 17, International Union of Operating Engineers, for 23 years. After that, she did similar work for about five years for District Council 4, Painters and Allied Trades.

Ms. Schott was an officer and member of International Association of Administrative Professionals, formerly known as Professional Secretaries International, Buffalo Chapter. She was named Outstanding Member of the Year in 2001 and Secretary of the Year in 1996.
A parishioner at St. Mary's Catholic Church in Swormville, she was a member of Christ Renews His Parish, a la-dies group.

Survivors include a daughter, Dayna Gaeta; a son, Michael Valenti; two sisters, Roberta Tumiel and Patricia Gar-cia; a brother, Robert Schott Jr.; and her fiance, Michael Stango.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be offered at 11 a.m. Saturday in St. Mary's Church, 6919 Transit Road, Sworm-ville.

Bloomberg.com, September 19, 2007, Wednesday

Bloomberg.com, September 19, 2007, Wednesday
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=a8d2YHjvlv0k

GM, UAW Discuss Retiree-Fund Alternatives, People Say (Update3)

By John Lippert and Jeff Green

Sept. 19 (Bloomberg) -- General Motors Corp. and the United Auto Workers are discussing alternatives to a proposed union-run retiree health-care fund after the two sides couldn't agree on how much money GM would provide, three people with knowledge of the talks said.

Negotiators focused until late today on the contribution to the fund, said the people, who didn't want to be named because the meetings are private. Bargainers will try to resolve other issues, and they may return later to the fund, the people said.

Failure to win UAW approval for the health plan would be a blow to Chief Executive Officer Rick Wagoner's strategy to end losses totaling $12.4 billion in 2005 and 2006. The largest U.S. automaker sought to shift $50 billion in future liabilities to the union in exchange for a one-time payment to the fund.

``It's a terrific setback,'' said Sean McAlinden, an analyst with the Center for Automotive Research in Ann Arbor, Michigan. ``Without the trust fund on retiree health, the first thing GM is going to offer is a massive, rapid offshoring of GM production and jobs.''

Katie McBride, a spokeswoman for Detroit-based GM, had no comment, and UAW spokesman Roger Kerson didn't return phone calls.

Fifth Day After Deadline

Today's talks marked the fifth day since the scheduled Sept. 14 expiration of the UAW's four-year contract. McBride said at about 9 p.m. New York time that negotiations had ended for the day and would resume tomorrow.

UAW President Ron Gettelfinger and representatives of Lazard Ltd., the New York investment bank led by Bruce Wasserstein, were at the negotiating table all day trying to resolve the health-plan impasse, one of the people said. The UAW hired Lazard to help it negotiate the so-called Voluntary Employee Benefit Association, or VEBA.

The UAW on Sept. 13 chose GM as its ``strike target,'' a designation that means the union wants to reach an agreement with GM first and then try to adapt the terms for contracts with Ford Motor Co. and Chrysler LLC.

By refusing to agree to the UAW's terms on retiree health, GM has shown it's willing to risk a walkout, McAlinden said.

GM, Ford and Chrysler estimate they pay $25 to $30 more an hour to American factory workers than Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda Motor Co. do at their U.S. plants. The two Japanese automakers are gaining U.S. market share at the expense of their U.S.-based competitors.

Focused on a VEBA

Investors are focused on a VEBA as the best way to reduce GM's medical liabilities, said John Casesa, managing partner of New York-based consulting firm Casesa Strategic Advisors LLC. GM shares have risen 16 percent since Sept. 12 on optimism that the talks would lead to an accord on retiree care.

``If the two sides can't agree on a VEBA, investors broadly speaking will be disappointed,'' Casesa said. ``The market is expecting that something constructive and meaningful will occur to address the health-care crisis in Detroit.''

Wagoner has already announced plans to shut 12 facilities and has eliminated more than 34,400 union jobs. He has said repeatedly the automaker needs additional health-care savings.

Other Options

``The UAW is under pressure to lower costs in order to expand employment,'' said Harry Katz, a labor relations professor at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. ``The VEBA is one way, but there may be others -- modifying wages and work rules, or being more flexible in the reduction of employment.''

A strike isn't likely because the damage to both sides would be huge, and Gettelfinger and Wagoner seem to be able to work well together, he said.

``Neither side seems to be overwhelmed by emotion or impulsive behavior,'' Katz said. ``There have been periods of time when that hasn't been true of one side or the other.''

Ford and Chrysler are operating under indefinite contract extensions while the GM talks continue. The contracts cover 180,681 active workers at the three automakers, as well as 419,621 retirees and surviving spouses.

GM fell 79 cents to $34.98 at 4:01 p.m. in New York Stock Exchange composite trading. The shares have gained 14 percent this year.

The automaker's 8.375 percent note due July 2033 rose 0.5 cent to 86.75 cents on the dollar, according to Trace, the bond- price reporting service of the NASD. The yield was 9.79 percent.

Credit-Default Swaps

Credit-default swaps based on GM debt dropped 20 basis points to 555 basis points today in New York. A basis point on a credit-default swap contract protecting $10 million of debt from default for five years is equivalent to $1,000 a year.

The UAW said in a Sept. 17 letter than it might set a new strike deadline if the two sides didn't reach an agreement quickly.

``We do not take your patience for granted and recognize that the negotiations process must accelerate in an expeditious manner or we will be forced to establish a firm deadline,'' Gettelfinger and Vice President Cal Rapson wrote to union executives.

Kerson also didn't return phone calls for comment about the letter, a copy of which was obtained by Bloomberg.

``It's been real rough,'' said Robert Williams Jr., the recording secretary for UAW Local 492 in Portland, Oregon, which represents about 120 workers at a parts depot for dealerships. ``We just hear things from word of mouth. Everyone wants to know what's happening in Detroit, and no one really does.''

To contact the reporters on this story: John Lippert in Southfield, Michigan, at jlippert@bloomberg.net ; Jeff Green in Southfield, Michigan, at jgreen16@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: September 19, 2007 22:08 EDT

WFUV 90.7 FM Public Radio (NYC), September 10, Monday

WFUV 90.7 FM Public Radio (NYC), September 10, Monday
Francine Moccio
was on WFUV Radio on Monday, September 10th discussing workplace conditions of women nail salon workers in the Metropolitan Area.
http://www.wfuv.org/

Wednesday, September 19, 2007

Bloomberg.com, September 19, 2007, Wednesday

Bloomberg.com, September 19, 2007, Wednesday
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=ax5Xu7c3yMAc&refer=home

GM Seeks Shift to 401(k) Pensions for New Employees (Update5)


By Jeff Green and John Lippert
Enlarge Image/Details

Sept. 19 (Bloomberg) -- General Motors Corp. would give new union members 401(k)-style retirement plans instead of traditional pensions for the first time under a proposed United Auto Workers contract, people with knowledge of the talks said.

GM's push toward individual investments instead of a guaranteed monthly check means the biggest U.S. automaker wants to scale back three landmark gains by the UAW in the past half- century: a fixed pension, company-paid health care and an annual cost-of-living raise.

The negotiations give Chief Executive Officer Rick Wagoner a chance to shed tradition and ensure GM's survival before the next contract expires in 2011. Since the current accord was created in 2003, GM has announced plans to shut 12 North American locations and eliminated more than 34,000 workers while losing $12.4 billion over 2005 and 2006.

``They know the old ways don't work -- they're not competitive,'' said Pete Hastings, a fixed-income analyst at Morgan Keegan & Co. in Memphis, Tennessee. ``They modernize their factories, and they have to modernize their pay scale.''

Such changes are also designed to allow GM to build vehicles at lower costs. GM, Ford Motor Co. and Chrysler LLC estimate they pay $25 to $30 more an hour to American factory workers than Toyota and Honda Motor Co. do at their U.S. plants. The two Japanese automakers are gaining U.S. market share at the expense of their U.S.-based competitors.

To narrow the gap, GM also has proposed freezing cost-of- living raises to help pay for a union-run fund that would take responsibility for retiree health care, said the people, who asked not to be identified because they aren't authorized to speak publicly.

Future Health Costs

The UAW won't easily agree to such changes, said David Lipsky, a professor of collective bargaining at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. ``All these changes would be radical,'' Lipsky said. ``Is the UAW willing to go along with it is another question altogether.''

The health-care fund would relieve the 99-year-old automaker of $50 billion in future union health costs. New UAW hires would also receive a set amount of cash for medical care each year after they retire, instead of an unlimited plan, according to the people familiar with the proposals, which may not be accepted.

General Motors shares fell 61 cents to $35.16 at 1:31 p.m. in New York Stock Exchange composite trading. They had advanced 16 percent this year through yesterday.

GM spokeswoman Katie McBride had no comment on the substance of the negotiations. UAW spokesman Roger Kerson didn't return phone calls seeking comment.

Talks resumed this morning after a recess last night, McBride said.

Other Proposals

Other proposals include a cap on out-of-pocket health-care costs for retirees and active workers, and lump-sum bonuses if the union accepts a wage freeze, the people said.

The union may be willing to negotiate on the trio of core ideals -- pension, health care and raises -- to save jobs. GM is closing 12 North American locations by the end of next year after 34,400 union workers agreed to retire or take buyouts last year.

``The most sacred benefit for the UAW is employment,'' said Dan Poole, who helps manage $31 billion at National City Bank in Cleveland, including GM shares. ``This is clearly a sign of how serious things are getting.''

The two sides have been exchanging proposals under an hour- by-hour contract extension since the previous four-year agreement expired Sept. 14. The UAW on Sept. 13 chose GM as its ``strike target,'' a designation that means the union wants to reach an agreement with GM first and then try to adapt the terms at Ford and Chrysler.

Swaps

Credit-default swaps based on GM debt fell 25 basis points to 577.5 basis points yesterday, according to Deutsche Bank AG. A basis point on a credit-default swap contract protecting $10 million of debt from default for five years is equivalent to $1,000 a year.

The people familiar with the 401(k) proposal didn't provide figures on potential costs savings because there are no final agreements. Such plans can limit risks for both sides, said a professor who is an arbiter for employer-union benefit issues.

``For the company, you spend the money today and you've fulfilled your obligation, it's over,'' said Paul Gerhart, a professor at Case Western University in Cleveland. ``For the employee, you get the money in the bank and it's not something that can be taken away from you if the company gets in trouble.''

Fixed-Income vs. 401(k)

In a traditional fixed-income pension, union workers are guaranteed a set yearly payout, which is $36,000 for current GM retirees. With a 401(k), also called a defined contribution plan, the employee and the company make payments to the worker's own retirement fund. The worker's eventual payout depends on how much of a return the account earns on the investments.

From 1986 to 2004, 101,000 single-employer plans in the U.S. ended their defined-benefit programs, according to the Washington-based Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. The number of private-benefit plans dropped 73 percent to about 30,000, from a high of 112,000 in 1986.

GM and Toyota provide UAW workers at their New United Motor Manufacturing Inc. joint venture in Fremont, California, with retirement pay that is one-third funded by a traditional pension with the rest from a 401(k), said Sean McAlinden, an analyst at the Center for Automotive Research in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

That plan costs the automakers about half as much as a traditional pension, he said.

The benefit of a shift from a pension to a 401(k) isn't necessarily in upfront payments to employees, said Dallas Salisbury, CEO of the Employee Benefit Research Institute, a nonpartisan group that tracks pension issues in Washington.

``It's over the very long term, and what they eliminate is balance-sheet liability and balance-sheet volatility,'' he said.

Frozen Pensions

Last year, GM said it would freeze the pensions of 36,000 nonunion salaried workers and switch to a 401(k). It also has capped health-care spending for salaried workers at 2006 levels.

``Management has made the changes,'' Poole said. ``Now they're coming to the union.''

Ford and Chrysler are operating under indefinite contract extensions while the GM talks continue. The contracts cover 180,681 active workers and 419,621 retirees and surviving spouses at GM, Ford and Chrysler.

GM and the UAW have agreed on the need for a so-called Voluntary Employee Beneficiary Association, or VEBA, to take retiree health-care obligations off company books, the people said. The fund would protect benefits if GM were to go bankrupt.

``It's a lot to sell in that big union in a short amount of time, for something they've never done before,'' said Richard Block, professor of labor and industrial relations at Michigan State University in Lansing, the state capital. ``They've seen the handwriting on the wall, so everything is sort of up in the air.''

To contact the reporters on this story: Jeff Green in Southfield, Michigan, at jgreen16@bloomberg.net ; John Lippert in Southfield, Michigan, at jlippert@bloomberg.net .
Last Updated: September 19, 2007 13:40 EDT

WKBW.com(Channel 7 ABC Buffalo), September 17, 2007, Monday

WKBW.com(Channel 7 ABC Buffalo), September 17, 2007, Monday
Arthur Wheaton
was interviewed by Melanie Pritchard discussing the UAW-Ford and UAW-GM negotiations.
http://www.wkbw.com/

Detroit Free Press (Michigan), September 17, 2007, Monday

Copyright 2007 Detroit Free Press

Detroit Free Press (Michigan)

Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Business News

September 17, 2007 Monday

SECTION: STATE AND REGIONAL NEWS


HEADLINE: Gabriel Alexander: Longtime automotive arbitrator

BYLINE: Zlati Meyer, Detroit Free Press

BODY:

Sep. 17--Gabriel Alexander, an automotive labor arbitrator and longtime chairman of the Chrysler/United Automobile Workers arbitration board, died Friday of heart failure in Sarasota, Fla. He was 97.

Born in Detroit, Mr. Alexander graduated from Central High School and from Wayne State University in 1933. After earning his law degree from the University of Michigan in 1936, he practiced law with his father in Detroit.

Mr. Alexander later lived in Huntington Woods and Bloomfield Hills before moving to Florida in 2001.

During World War II, he was an aircraft parts inspector and then a hearing officer for the automotive section of the Detroit Regional War Labor Board. He was appointed the public member of the Detroit Regional Wage Stabilization Board from 1951 to 1953.

He was the General Motors Corp./UAW labor umpire from 1948 to 1954 and also served as umpire with Bethlehem Steel/United Steelworkers of America and Great Lakes Steel/United Steelworkers, among others.

In addition to his role as head of the Chrysler/UAW arbitration board for more than 30 years until he retired at age 86, Mr. Alexander was the longtime chairman of the board of the legal services plan, which offered free legal help to union members working for the Big Three. He held the position from its 1977 inception to 1999.

His daughter Ellen, herself a labor arbitrator, recalled why her dad stayed in arbitration work after he initially was asked to help with some GM matters.

"The challenge was to find a solution that keeps the parties working together in the future," she said Sunday.

Mr. Alexander, an early member and a president of the National Academy of Arbitrators, also was a visiting professor of labor relations at Wayne State, which houses his automotive and other industry decisions, and a guest professor at the School of Industrial and Labor Relations at Cornell University.

"He forged trusting relationships on both sides of the arbitration table in the days when presentations were made by union leaders and company industrial relations officials rather than attorneys," Ellen Alexander said.

An avid sailor, Mr. Alexander was commodore of the Great Lakes Yacht Club and the Detroit River Yachting Association. In addition, he was a member of the Amateur Radio Relay League and of the Birmingham Temple.

In addition to his daughter, Mr. Alexander is survived by two other daughters, Molly Schechter and Sara Alexander; a grandson, and a great-grandson.

Services will be in Florida on Tuesday.

Memorial contributions may be sent to the Jewish Family & Children's Service, 2688 Fruitville, Sarasota, FL 34237, or the Florida West Coast Symphony, 709 N. Tamiami Trail, Sarasota, FL 34236.

Contact ZLATI MEYER at 313-223-4439 or meyer@freepress.com

To see more of the Detroit Free Press, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.freep.com Copyright (c) 2007, Detroit Free Press Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA.

WBEN 930 AM, September 14, 2007, Friday

WBEN 930 AM
Arthur Wheaton
was on WBEN Radio on Friday September 14th discussing the UAW-Ford and UAW-GM negotiations.
http://www.wben.com/

The Journal News (Westchester County, New York), September 14, 2007, Friday

Copyright 2007 The Journal News (Westerchester County, NY)

All Rights Reserved

The Journal News (Westchester County, New York)

September 14, 2007 Friday

RK Edition

SECTION: NEWS; Pg. 4A

HEADLINE: 6 fight for Democratic line in Spring Valley

BYLINE: Suzan Clarke

BODY:

SPRING VALLEY - Six Democratic candidates will compete for two trustee seats and one justice spot in the primary elections Tuesday.

Two three-person tickets consisting of one justice and two trustee candidates will face off for the Democratic ballot line, which is crucial in a village where registered Democrats hold a wide majority. Some will seek the Republican line as well.

In the trustee race, there are also two opportunities to cast a ballot on the Republican line, which means candidates could face opposition from write-in candidates.

Incumbent Justice Christine Theodore of Spring Valley will face a challenge from Judeline Constant-Rouzard. Both women are lawyers and are seeking the Democratic and Republican lines.

Theodore was appointed by Mayor George Darden this year.

"I feel that I am now an experienced judge," Theodore said. "I'm the sitting judge at this point in time ... and I am an effective judge and I hope to remain here."

Her opponent, Constant-Rouzard, lived in the village until recently.

"I believe that with my qualifications I can be a fair and impartial judge," said Constant-Rouzard, of New City. "I love the community and I'd like to serve."

Two trustee candidates have been involved in a controversy.

One team of candidates for village office boycotted a meet-the-candidates forum Wednesday. The boycotting group, including the team of Demeza Delhomme, Darlene Roc and Constant-Rouzard, said they wouldn't attend because of wrongdoing allegedly committed by an opponent.

Delhomme, a trustee candidate who was formerly on the village board, recently filed a police report accusing opponent Anthony Leon of hitting him. Leon denied the allegation, saying Delhomme was the aggressor.

Delhomme could not be reached for comment on his platform yesterday. He has said during the campaign that voters know his record.

Darlene Roc said her priorities as trustee would be to create a safe environment with better recreation opportunities for youth and to improve the general quality of life for the community. She also would focus on tax relief.

"We know a lot of people that are moving; they're buying in Monroe, Washingtonville. Why? Because they can't afford to live in Spring Valley ... it's crazy," Roc said.

Roc and Delhomme - who are also seeking the Republican ballot line - are facing Leon and Trustee Joseph DesMaret. Leon is a village Planning Board member. The two are running as a team with Theodore.

DesMaret and Leon have both said the key issues were the provision of affordable housing and the reduction of taxes.

DesMaret said that, during his term on the board, the village has brought new business and jobs to the Spring Valley Marketplace, approved more than 500 apartment units and created new parks. He hoped voters returned him to office because of his vision for the village, dedication to community and integrity, he said.

Leon said he also would focus on the ongoing urban renewal project. He also said he would lower some of the top salaries at Village Hall.

"People should vote for me because I'm one of the most qualified candidates in the race," he said. "My contribution would be a plus for any administration."

Village justices earn $38,000 a year and serve four-year terms. Trustees also serve four-year terms and earn $16,000 a year.

Reach Suzan Clarke at snclarke@lohud.com or 845-578-2414.

{}The Delhomme file

{}Name: Demeza Delhomme

{}Ballot line: Democrat; Republican

{}Born: Feb. 17, 1948

{}Occupation: Bridge welder

{}Political, community experience: Former Spring Valley trustee; ran for county Legislature in 2004; ran for Spring Valley mayor against George Darden in a Democratic primary in 2002; ran for Spring Valley mayor against Allan Thompson in 1997

{}Education: Educated in Haiti and the Bahamas; attended Apex Technical College in New York for welding training

{}Priorities: Candidate could not be reached for comment

{}The Roc file

{}Name: Darlene Roc

{}Ballot line: Democrat; Republican

{}Born: Sept. 29, 1972

{}Occupation: Sales representative

{}Political, community experience: Member, Spring Valley Youth Court program; serves as local liaison for Assemblywoman Ellen Jaffee, D-Suffern; member, United Haitian American Caucus; ran for Spring Valley village trustee in 2005

{}Education: Bachelor's in business administration from Quiskeya University in Port-au-Prince, Haiti

{}Priorities: Youth and tax relief

{}The Constant-Rouzard file

{}Name: Judeline Constant Rouzard

{}Ballot line: Democrat; Republican

{}Born: April 11, 1973

{}Occupation: lawyer

{}Political, community experience: Served on board of the Spring Valley Housing Authority from 1994 to 2001

{}Education: Bachelor's in social science, Dominican College in Orangeburg; paralegal certificate, Mercy College in White Plains; juris doctor, Thomas M. Cooley Law School in Lansing, Mich.; completed coursework for a master's in business administration at Long Island University's Graduate Campus in Rockland

{}The DesMaret file

{}Name: Joseph DesMaret

{}Ballot line: Democrat; Independence

{}Born: Aug. 18, 1957

{}Occupation: Financial analyst

{}Political, community experience: Trustee; ran for village trustee in 2001 Democratic primary; has two local-access cable television programs that appear weekly

{}Education: Bachelor's in public accounting, Mercy College in White Plains; associate degree, Westchester Business Institute in White Plains

{}Priorities: Affordable housing and tax relief

{}The Leon file

{}Name: Anthony Leon

{}Ballot line: Democrat; Independence

{}Born: Jan. 17, 1956

{}Occupation: Runs own management company

{}Political, community experience: Two-term appointed member of the Spring Valley Planning Board

{}Education: Master's in public administration and completed advanced studies in nonprofit management and health care management, Long Island University, Rockland; bachelor's in secondary education, St. Thomas Aquinas College in Sparkill; attended educational institutions in Mexico and Haiti; trained in physical education and basketball coaching, diplomacy and electronics

{}Priorities: Affordable housing and urban renewal

{}The Theodore file

{}Name: Christine Theodore

{}Ballot line: Democrat; Independence

{}Born: Jan. 10, 1974

{}Occupation: Lawyer

{}Political, community experience: Appointed village justice in Spring Valley in April

{}Education: Juris doctor, Albany Law School of Union University; bachelor's in industrial and labor relations from Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y.