Detroit auto workers denounce Obama's concession demands

[dcsmart]

Auto workers responded angrily on Tuesday to the concessions demanded by President Barack Obama in exchange for providing loans to the auto industry. The open contempt for the working class and unflinching subordination to finance capital that permeated Obama's remarks caught many by surprise.

The World Socialist Web Site spoke to workers at Chrysler's truck assembly plant in Warren, Michigan. Some admitted that they had put stock in Obama's campaign promises before he was elected, but promise and reality ended up being opposites.

"I feel betrayed," said one worker. "That's the best way to sum it up," she concluded.

A coworker added, "My opinion of him, at first, was that he's going to stick up for us." She went on to acknowledge the abrupt change in the president's attitude toward workers since taking office. "He's only been in three months. What he was saying then and what he is saying now seems to me like a total contradiction."

She compared the Obama administration with the United Auto Workers (UAW) bureaucracy which pushed so vociferously for his election. "Just like the UAW reps in here, The UAW is not representing us. They're representing themselves. The UAW officials are going to collect two pensions," she said, while rank and file auto workers would lose theirs.

Many were outraged by the sharp contrast between the treatment of Wall Street companies, which were given trillions of dollars with no strings attached, and the treatment of auto workers, who are asked to give up everything they have in order for the auto companies to receive a few billion dollars in assistance.

"Why do we have to cut, cut, cut when they get millions in bonuses?" asked another. "Our Christmas bonus was $600 but with taxes taken out; it was half that. Why don't they attack AIG? What the auto companies are asking for is a drop in the bucket compared to what they got."
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FULL ARTICLE
http://www.wsws.org/articles/2009/apr2009/auto-a01.shtml

[bluestateguy]

1. The UAW still has no statement on their website

and this story is chock full of anonymous quotes.

[amandabeech]

2. The UAW is likely to be in a bad place on this one.

They were big time supporters of Obama, and now, I'm sure some members think that Obama is putting the screws to them.


If there's nothing on their website yet, I'd say that either

1) they're keeping their heads down because they're mortifiedly embarrassed; or

2) there is an incredible amount of internal conflict over this.

[LiberalFighter]

4. UAW did not endorse anyone in the primary.

[madrchsod]

3. sounds like some of my fellow steelworkers during after our esop meetings

boy oh boy was the esop a disaster for the union members...ten`s of thousands of dollars per employee vanished when the company went bankrupt.