4 ms·

When a small startup fails, it's often the fault of the team. When a large organization fails, it's almost always the fault of the leadership. It strikes me a

When a small startup fails, it's often the fault of the team. When a large organization fails, it's almost always the fault of the leadership. It strikes me as a real chickensh*t move how our captains of industry rush to claim credit and bonuses when things go right, but blame the workers when the executives can't live up to the guidance they gave to Wall Street.

mimixco 8y ago
The documentary shows that one of GM's main problems is that they are buried in sunk pension costs. They spend more on people who no longer work there than people who do. Toyota isn't unionized, doesn't have any trouble attracting workers, and has a great reputation for quality. There was a time when unions were needed to improve working conditions, but that time has passed. IMHO, it was a mistake to bail them out. I see why we did it, but it didn't fix the root problems.
- pacerwpg 8y ago
  Pension costs are not unknowable - that sounds like a failure to plan for future costs.
  - mimixco 8y ago
    It wasn't a matter of not knowing them. They knew. They were negotiated by the unions. It was a matter of not having enough money to pay them. GM simply cannot sell cars at market prices and also pay all the pensions and higher wages that the union demands. It's not workable.
    - toomuchtodo 8y ago
      It could’ve funded the pension fund instead of performing share buybacks, no? It can’t be said they didn’t have that $10 billion. They had it.
- timoth3y 8y ago
  Toyota is completely unionized. Toyota considers their workers to be one of the reasons for their quality. More important, the executives knew about the pension liabilities when they accepted the job. It's been part of their planning and their guidance all along. Blaming the workers when those plans failed is cowardly. Edit: German automakers are also highly unionized. It doesn't seem to prevent them from making quality cars either. It really seems to me that executives blaming the workers is a US and UK thing. In many business cultures, it just makes the executive seem incompetent.
  - mimixco 8y ago
    Toyota in the US is not unionized. Their one unionized factory in Fremont, CA closed several years ago and is now a Tesla plant.

mimixco 8y ago

The documentary shows that one of GM's main problems is that they are buried in sunk pension costs. They spend more on people who no longer work there than people who do. Toyota isn't unionized, doesn't have any trouble attracting workers, and has a great reputation for quality. There was a time when unions were needed to improve working conditions, but that time has passed. IMHO, it was a mistake to bail them out. I see why we did it, but it didn't fix the root problems.

pacerwpg 8y ago
Pension costs are not unknowable - that sounds like a failure to plan for future costs.
- mimixco 8y ago
  It wasn't a matter of not knowing them. They knew. They were negotiated by the unions. It was a matter of not having enough money to pay them. GM simply cannot sell cars at market prices and also pay all the pensions and higher wages that the union demands. It's not workable.
  - toomuchtodo 8y ago
    It could’ve funded the pension fund instead of performing share buybacks, no? It can’t be said they didn’t have that $10 billion. They had it.
timoth3y 8y ago
Toyota is completely unionized. Toyota considers their workers to be one of the reasons for their quality. More important, the executives knew about the pension liabilities when they accepted the job. It's been part of their planning and their guidance all along. Blaming the workers when those plans failed is cowardly. Edit: German automakers are also highly unionized. It doesn't seem to prevent them from making quality cars either. It really seems to me that executives blaming the workers is a US and UK thing. In many business cultures, it just makes the executive seem incompetent.
- mimixco 8y ago
  Toyota in the US is not unionized. Their one unionized factory in Fremont, CA closed several years ago and is now a Tesla plant.