Lived with the benefits and pitfalls of the US auto industry for 40 years.
Born and raised near Dayton, Ohio., three generations of my family have had careers with GM. Starting with my Grandfather in the 1950's, who retired as the longest salaried employee in the history of GM as a parts buyer. My father who became a tool maker in the late 70's and took a buyout a couple of years before full retirement. My cousin, a chassis Engineer who took a buyout just 5 years from full retirement. And I worked in the engineering design industry as a contractor to many different suppliers to the auto industry until those opportunities began to go away as far back as ten years ago.
Note, with exception of my father's career, we've all had white collar jobs.
I've gone back and forth about the Unions, to the conclusion that they are not at fault here. At one time Union wages were a bit over the top but as far back as a decade ago, newly hired workers' wages were more reasonable.
I think our politicians are the first to blame followed closely by these companies' top management, executives, and directors. Our politicians are to blame for having the oil companies in they're wallets for decades, and for the lack of understanding how to implement truly valuable regulations on the industry. This benefited the greed of the industry greatly, allowing these companies to squash or purchase and kill any new technology that would be seen as a threat to the politician/oil/auto threesome. Oil companies that buy patent rights to a battery, and shelf it instead of furthering development.
NAFTA was a gloss over. Using the argument that Unions were killing the auto industry. We lost jobs and the execs made more money, and the companies' spent record amounts ensuring quality of product manufactured everywhere but in our back yard.
Unfortunately, it looks as though this country would have a devastating reaction to the status quot. 3 million jobs are at risk, not including those already lost.
The feds should review the history of they're own relationship with the industry. Break the executive stranglehold on these companies and force them to re-invest in the very technologies they in the past have paid enormous effort and investment to stop. Revisit the relationship between clean, low cost energy, fuel sources, and the automobile. Provide incentives for the industry to convert plants to alternative manufacturing, then lease them and the supporting employees to other developing industries. We are told that 3 million jobs could be created by rebuilding our power grid with new technologies.
If there is any payback to the taxpayer for a bail-out, it should be in the development of future employment.
And if the auto industry were forced to comply with these types of regulations, I would be in favor of a bail out.
