UAW Suspends Subsidized Viagra, Controls GM

So much for the great concessions made by all sides in the negotiations for Government Motors' Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

In labor's hip pocket, Obama first refused to let Chrysler and GM merge to combine operations and save huge costs because--you guessed it--the United Automobile Workers (UAW)--wouldn't agree since it would mean loss of jobs and, and mostly, loss of those lovely union dues.

Then, while publicly saying that all sides would make sacrifices to ensure GM's survival, Obama and his team let the UAW completely off the hook while screwing every single investor of his money (bondholders get worthless stock in exchange).

What did the UAW cede? Nothing really. The union agreed to "suspend" (har de har har) overtime pay for less than 40 hours worked, subsidized Viagra, and the JOBS bank that paid employees full wages not to work (good deal if you can get it, eh?). At the same time, the UAW retained veto power over GM's foreign operations, meaning the company can't do more work in Mexico without the UAW imprimatur.

Hourly rates and all benefits for current UAW workers remain locked in, though it may be necessary to screw retirees if the union can't sell its 17.5-percent stake in Government Motors to fund health care in the future.

Now, given that great sacrifice, how long do you think GM will survive?

Answer: As long as Obama and the Democrats are in power. Congress and the White House are now captive nations of labor--especially the UAW--and will write checks forever (at taxpayer expense) to keep GM afloat.

What about selling the government's 60 percent stake on the open market?

Answer: Fat chance. At its peak, GM was never valued at more than $52 billion, roughly the cost of Uncle Obama's current 60 percent share, so a half-size Government Motors would have to rise to $80 billion in valuation before the government could sell out.

More har de har har....

GM Out of Luck in a Canadian Bankruptcy

If (and it should) General Motors ends up in bankruptcy court in the U.S., it can bust the union contracts that have a stranglehold over it, but in Canada, GM faces a stiffer challenge.

Canadian bankruptcy law is federally written, but the constitution reserves civil rights and property settlements to the provinces in bankruptcy proceedings. These areas include employment, so GM would have to present its case for altering its Canadian union contracts to a provincial (maybe several provincial) Labour Board(s). Fat chance of victory, eh?

One final caveat: If you buy a unionized company in Canada, you inherit the union contract, for better or worse, till death do you part.

Canada--a good place to work, a bad place to employ.

Wanna Know What's Weighing Down the Big 3?

Such a lovely site that it no doubt sends chills of joy down the spine of every member of the United Auto Workers--22 pounds and 5,000 pages of their contract with Ford in 2007.

GM and Chrysler got similar packages--and all three now have big problems!

Update: CBS Nightly News “gained access” to the Ford contract. Here’s the video.