Original article, a comment by Greg Shotwell, via Socialist Worker (US):
THE CEOs of the three Detroit automakers will return to Congress December 4 to request some $36 billion in loans from the federal government. As a condition of receiving that aid, the automakers were told to provide Congress with a plan for “restructuring” their companies that will include plant closings, elimination of tens of thousands of jobs, and cuts in benefits.
The United Auto Workers (UAW) is prepared to accept this. In a December 3 press conference, UAW President Ron Gettelfinger announced that the union would allow the companies to defer payments into a trust fund that covers retiree health care and to eliminate the “jobs bank” program that provides pay and benefits for laid-off workers.
Gregg Shotwell, a recently retired GM/Delphi worker and a founder of the Soldiers of Solidarity network, challenges the efforts by employers and politicians to blame the auto crisis on union workers: