The US Politics |OT|

[HylianSwordsman]

Machiavellian said:

Jaicee said:

So the United Auto Workers are on strike against General Motors now for the first time since 2007. (Live updates here.) It's the largest strike action against an American company to take place in the U.S. since...the last time the United Auto Workers went on strike against General Motors in 2007. Nearly 50,000 workers are participating, demanding better pay and health care benefits, job protections, expanded profit sharing, and more. GM workers made huge sacrifices during the company's bankruptcy proceedings amidst the Great Recession, but the company has returned to making tens of billions in profits since then and the workers are wondering why as much is not reflected in their pay and benefits.

Thanks mainly to a wave of teacher strikes, the largest number of work stoppages, and of workers participating in work stoppages, since the 1980s was seen last year, and total number of unionized workers increased for the first time in decades. This year's totals could be higher. It appears we are witnessing a new trend toward the revitalization of the American labor movement.

I've got no further comment except to say that I fully support this action and movement unequivocally. I hope this trend continues.

Yep, this will definitely make sure they move production out of the US as fast as possible.  They will institute some stopgate measure to get people back to work while they plan on moving production even more out of the US.  Should be interesting in the next 5 years how this all plays out.

What a cowardly cop-out line. If cheaper labor makes them move overseas, they'd do it eventually anyway. This could accelerate the process, but who gives a shit? That doesn't mean the factories get demolished. An empty factory could be bought from the company by the union, and you bet your ass that I and countless others would definitely boycott the fuck out of GM and support the new American union-run factories instead of GM if they moved overseas, the whole "buy American" crowd would get on board, it would be huge. Can you imagine? Buying American made cars, knowing that every dime went to an American worker, because the CEOs that used to get the money went overseas? It'd be a damn satisfying purchase.

Of course, GM could avoid the issue altogether by staying here, NOT raising the prices on their cars, and instead just sharing more of the profit with the workers, and accepting that maybe the corporate board members don't deserve all that money.