CAW Taking A Fit

A week ago Fiat warned that it would not be prepared to join with Chrysler without major concessions by the Canadian Auto Workers Union. Now federal Industry Minister Tony Clement, correctly reading the writing on the wall states that taxpayer funding to be allocated to Chrysler LLC and General Motors Corp., to enable them to remain in Canada, employing Canadian workers, will have to come up with a more sensibly workable agreement with the CAW.

Ken Lewenza has long railed against the unfairness of expectations that his union members will relent, through him, and make further sacrifices to assist the two embattled car makers meet their obligations, to enable them to receive taxpayer-funded assistance. He and his union feel, in addition, that the public purse should guarantee auto workers' pensions in the event of a collapse. He isn't amenable to doing much to help prevent that collapse.

The world is such an unfair place, according to Ken Lewenza. Unfairly targeting his union members, trying to force them to capitulate to the horrible demands that their wages be at least equal to that of other, un-unionized Canadian auto workers. He is fixated on the idea that sacrifices must be made - by the executives of the auto manufacturers, by the federal and provincial governments, by the taxpayers, but not auto workers, his union members.

But the ultimatum has been delivered, that without the union agreeing to a deep cut in worker compensation, there will be no bail-out and the auto workers will then face the very real and dire consequences of industry bankruptcy with all that entails. Why waste 'public money', taxpayer funding on an industry certain to fail because inadequate moves were made to resuscitate it?

There are ten thousand non-unionized workers in Canada at Toyota and Honda factories. Their wages are not commensurate with those of the unionized workers, yet their wages are fair compensation for the work accomplished. Unionized auto workers' compensation has long been recognized as too expensive, and their additional perks a drag on the companies' bottom line.

There isn't much time left for sufficiently significant moves to take effect in the hopes of saving the two auto manufacturers from bankruptcy protection. Chrysler would very much like the CAW to accept a pay slide from $76 to $57 an hour, reflective of what Toyota Motor Corp. pays its Canadian workers. Holy Jumping Jupiter! $76 an hour and all those benefits on top? For factory work?

The CAW is balking, hoping for alternate resolutions that won't diminish the handsome paycheques auto workers have been enjoying. The Canadian and Ontario governments are now playing hardball with taxpayer funds, giving Chrysler until April 30 to strike a new labour deal and finalize its commercial partnership with Fiat SpA. General Motors too has to renegotiate its union contract for the funding on offer.

So what's the CAW doing? Pleading with workers at car assembly plants owned by Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda Motor Co. for their support, stressing the necessity for all auto workers to stand together. Honda workers were understandably disinterested in being cajoled to come to the support of their GM and Chrysler counterparts, the poor boys being urged to rescue the rich guys.

Long past time for Ken Lewenza and the CAW to face realities.