UAW strikes GM's Malibu plant in Kansas

David Barkholz
Automotive News
May 5, 2008 - 10:24 am ET
UPDATED: 5/5/08 10:51 a.m. EDT

DETROIT -- The UAW this morning struck a General Motors assembly plant that makes the hot-selling Chevrolet Malibu sedan. Members of UAW Local 31 in Kansas City, Kan.,walked out at 10 a.m. EDT at GM's Fairfax assembly plant, which employs about 2,600 people.

The stoppage came after GM failed to reach a local operating contract with the union, said a secretary at UAW Local 31.

The union had put GM on notice weeks ago that it might strike over issues of seniority and job security. The stoppage could crimp supplies of the Malibu, already in short supply because of high consumer demand. At the end of April dealers had just a 36-day supply of the Malibu sedan nationally.

The Fairfax plant makes about 574 Malibus a day. It also makes the Saturn Aura.

Some supplies will remain available even if the strike continues. Another GM assembly plant in Orion Township, Mich., makes the Malibu sedan along with the Pontiac G6. Orion Township already has a local agreement. It currently makes about 388 Malibus a day.

Fairfax is among the dozens of GM plants without a local contract. Only 11 of the 72 plants have local contracts, though the UAW signed a national contract with GM in September. Local contracts provide guidance on work rules, seniority and other non-economic issues.

Fairfax is the second major GM assembly plant to strike over the failure to obtain a local contract. GM's Delta Township assembly plant near Lansing, Mich., has been on strike for nearly three weeks. It makes GM's popular crossovers, the Buick Enclave, GMC Acadia and Saturn Outlook.

Some analysts have speculated that the UAW is holding local strikes to try to pressure GM to help broker a settlement in the 10-week old strike at American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings Inc.

UAW Ron Gettelfinger said last week that the union should not expect GM to get involved because it is simply a dispute between the union and American Axle.

That walkout by 3,650 workers at five American Axle plants has idled or hampered production at 31 GM plants.

 

Uh oh, another union bashing thread in the making.

 

Why bash the dumb animals...?

 

In the United states we're all union members.

 

You have said your union is a different animial than what we see with the automakers. I believe you on that, but don't you think the auto union takes some extreme measures? Seems to me like it should be a give and take relationships and all I see the auto unions do is take and take.

 

It is, until contract time. All I see is the Company is take, take, take. The Company is always after cutting their hourly worker's wage and benefits yet keeping their own high. It really is a shame when they get multi million dollar bonuses and all they want is to cut the throat of their hourlies.

In my union's situation, the Company is making money hand over fist, over and over, quarterly breaking the previous quarter's earnings, yet they will drive to cut our benefits because they are costing them so much. What hypocrites they are.

Our contract is up next year. I expect a strike.

 

Yes, we can do without some crappy cars, but not military aircraft when our 30+ year old fighters are falling from the sky.

 

You're not very smart.

 

The new planes have extremely low maintenance. Old planes cost more, hands down.

 

The power to change that is still with the consumer. They can't make money of no one purchases the product

 

Threats. Common sense. You need some.

So, you'd bring a knife to a gunfight, huh. I feel sorry for our military when you're a politician.

 

10-4

 

Sweet, "Clash of the Nutjobs..."

Not a big fan of Unions, yet I like us having lots of new planes. Do we really need them? Maybe not, but I like our country being a head of the curve when it comes to technology. Better to have it, and not need them...than to not have them, and end up needing them.

 

All needed. You want us to lose a war due to an inferior military? That's not the American way.