When Reps. Peter Roskam and Mark Kirk convened a hearing in late November
to contemplate possible solutions for the nation’s financial crisis, it seems they
shared notes on the pros and cons of a potential auto industry bailout.
Unfortunately, whatever talking points they exchanged weren’t very
accurate.
In dispute is the false claim that the auto industry is struggling because the contracts negotiated by the United Auto Workers (UAW) are too generous. Kirk went on WLS’ Don Wade & Roma Morning Show claiming General Motor’s hourly labor cost is $78 per hour and some workers have a right to 120 days of vacation time, both of which are highly misleading figures. He then peddled the same $70-plus per hour figure on WTTW’s Chicago Tonight and in a mailer to supporters yesterday.
Roskam took it a step further, insinuating yesterday on Don Wade & Roma that some auto workers earned $75 an hour in wages alone. Listen here:
ROSKAM: Here’s what’s interesting. When you’re talking to members of Congress from southern states, and this is a very real concern that the Big Three have, they’re attitude is, look—and I’ve had conversations with people about this. I have a Nissan plant in my district in, I don’t know, Alabama or Georgia or wherever it is. My guys are making 40 bucks an hour. Why in the world am I going to vote in favor, as an Alabama member of Congress, for a bailout for guys that are making 75 bucks an hour? They would get eaten alive if they voted in favor of that, so …
ROMA: I think it’s just flat insane.
What’s actually insane is that the two Republican congressmen keep repeating incorrect statements. Kirk’s figure factors in all the the health care and retirement obligations of former employees. Considering that the UAW represents 180,681 current employees at Chrysler, Ford, and General Motors and over 500,000 retired members and surviving spouses, dividing the combined costs associated with employees and retirees by the actual hours worked is going to produce a wildly inflated per-hour rate.
Even more ludicrous is Roskam’s claim that UAW workers net a salary of $75 per hour. That number is actually about $28 per hour. Even if benefits are included in the calculation -- around $10 per hour, according to estimates from the International Motor Vehicle Program -- the figure does not even approach Roskam’s number. In short, he has no clue what he’s talking about.
The UAW announced yesterday that members are willing to sacrifice job security provisions and financing for retiree health care if it would help keep General Motors and Chrysler out of bankruptcy. Those are big concessions for a union struggling to survive. It’d be nice if our representatives took the time to understand the issues at hand instead of demonizing working people who are grasping for their jobs.
fearnotpolitics on Fri, 12/05/2008 - 12:55
Good catch. This absurd line of reasoning keeps getting repeated without getting knocked down. Fortunately we have you guys to help the cause. Also, I hope you saw that one of the Tribune's business columnists is picking up on it too. In today's column, David Greising wrote:
"The '$73-an-hour worker.' That inflated figure, touted by opponents, is a distorted agglomeration, an all-in cost that loads workers with all the health, pension and benefits costs of retirees too.
In reality, pay at the Detroit Three is converging with the Japanese and German auto plants transplanted into non-union, Southern states. According to testimony, in an apples-to-apples comparison, a Chrysler worker today earns about $28 an hour, compared with $25 an hour for a worker at Toyota's Georgetown, Ky., plant."
Keep up the good work.
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