5 ms·

Actually the average UAW salary is around $73 an hour. But the executives are far worse and totally undeserving of any taxpayer help: "While Uncle Sam debates

by ckinnan 18y ago

Actually the average UAW salary is around $73 an hour. But the executives are far worse and totally undeserving of any taxpayer help: "While Uncle Sam debates a $25 billion rescue for the country's automakers, some 9,000 GM managers continue to enjoy one of the industry's best perks - a new car every six months for $250 a month, with repairs and insurance included. And they can write off gas on their expenses." http://www.nypost.com/seven/11182008/news/politics/gm_honchos_easy_perking_139245.htm http://www.nypost.com/seven/11182008/news/politics/gm_honcho...

jmtulloss 18y ago
Can you site that $73/hour wage? A cursory glance around the internet indicated something around $30/hr as of last year. The only places I saw $73 were other forums, but maybe they all have a common, legit source.
- rms 18y ago
  I believe that $73/hour number includes all executive pay and obviously is an average chosen to misrepresent information. The average assembly line worker wage (and the median wage) is closer to $30.
  - Prrometheus 18y ago
    I have seen the $73/hr number cited as non-executive compensation. That's total compensation, not just wages, which covers the cost of benefits and the like. edit: This has some links: http://mjperry.blogspot.com/2008/11/should-we-really-bail-out-7320-per-hour.html http://mjperry.blogspot.com/2008/11/should-we-really-bail-ou...
- mdasen 18y ago
  I cannot say what the previous person was referencing, but NPR has a great comparison of GM and Toyota at http://www.npr.org/news/specials/gmvstoyota/ http://www.npr.org/news/specials/gmvstoyota/ If you read the list, it looks like you're both (partially) correct. The average hourly salary for non-skilled assembly-line workers is a little over $31. However, GM's labor cost per hour exceeds $73/hour for those workers. So, in terms of GM's costs, it's over $73/hour. I'm guessing the UAW has structured it in a way that benefits the employees, but I can't imagine what benefits would be worth more than my salary. Seems to me like more in salary and less in benefits would appeal to me more.
  - zach 18y ago
    Well, the reason employer-sponsored health care took off was that WWII wage controls were still around for years of the post-war economy. Growing employers, auto manufacturers in particular, could not offer higher wages to attract workers. So they offered employer-sponsored health programs and attractive pensions. In the 1970s, when Nixon brought back wage controls, they improved their low-deductible health care plans to no-deductible plans. Here's the scenario. From its boom era, Detroit ended up saddled with lots of pensions, expensive health care, and a special interest which fights cutbacks fiercely. It was basically building up an deficit that, when combined with horrible mismanagement, sent it into tremendous debt and would hobble it when it hit bad economic times and lost access to the capital markets. Does that scenario look familiar? That's about what's happening to the United States. Hey wait, did a presidential hopeful write this op-ed? Hmm.
  - redrobot5050 18y ago
    No, see, people have the figure wrong. It costs GM $73/hour for labor because GM is still supporting retirees (that retire early, at age 50) with health care and a 70% salary pension. To cover those costs, for some reason, they cover it as "labor costs", This makes the union look bad, while simultaneously ignoring the fact that GM made tons of crap vehicles nobody wanted and has never tried to innovate.
- newsycaccount 18y ago
  http://www.prospect.org/csnc/blogs/beat_the_press_archive?month=11&year=2008&base_name=gm_auto_workers_are_not_paid_7 http://www.prospect.org/csnc/blogs/beat_the_press_archive?mo...
Dilpil 18y ago
$73 is labor cost, this includes many things on top of the $30 per hour. This is higher than their competitors but not by as much as it seems.
work_in_the_usa 18y ago
i love how people can't stand the guy who works on the line. This guy or gal works to make a car for you. The customer. This person puts up with all the same bs that you have to put up with on your daily job. He/she was smart to get into the automotive and have a great job. One because they can support their family put their kids through college so their child has more of an education then they do. (that helps out America) and their children can succeed in America and not rely on the automotive to support them. Second,because this person turns around and puts that money they made, right back into their fellow communities. Spending money so others can benefit off of their hard earn money.Thirdly, they can give to charities help out others and do good for their communities. So, why does everyone bug the guy on the line....becasue he makes good money and has no education, so what!!!?? What about the endless managers that leave the office and go golfing on company time that are educated? Or the endless lunches that they never return from that the company has to pay for? Or how they can micro manage everything and make it twice as worse then when they started it. Or the guy who works out of his house and only puts in 3 hours of work in a day. Please give me a break!!! this is not only automotive but it is with every corporation in America! When will the educated people quite ripping off the corporation's so that the people that can't get an education can make a decent living and survive in America and enjoy the American dream!! So please quit wasting your time to find out of much the average line guy makes and start looking into your own company and start making changes!! Why do you have to have a degree to flip hamburgers?? because that is what is happening to us. Quit pointing the fingers and start seeing what every manager and salary person is doing with the company money. Maybe its time to start working different in America, start working for the right reasons.
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by ckinnan 18y ago

jmtulloss 18y ago

Can you site that $73/hour wage? A cursory glance around the internet indicated something around $30/hr as of last year. The only places I saw $73 were other forums, but maybe they all have a common, legit source.

rms 18y ago
I believe that $73/hour number includes all executive pay and obviously is an average chosen to misrepresent information. The average assembly line worker wage (and the median wage) is closer to $30.
- Prrometheus 18y ago
  I have seen the $73/hr number cited as non-executive compensation. That's total compensation, not just wages, which covers the cost of benefits and the like. edit: This has some links: http://mjperry.blogspot.com/2008/11/should-we-really-bail-out-7320-per-hour.html http://mjperry.blogspot.com/2008/11/should-we-really-bail-ou...
mdasen 18y ago
I cannot say what the previous person was referencing, but NPR has a great comparison of GM and Toyota at http://www.npr.org/news/specials/gmvstoyota/ http://www.npr.org/news/specials/gmvstoyota/ If you read the list, it looks like you're both (partially) correct. The average hourly salary for non-skilled assembly-line workers is a little over $31. However, GM's labor cost per hour exceeds $73/hour for those workers. So, in terms of GM's costs, it's over $73/hour. I'm guessing the UAW has structured it in a way that benefits the employees, but I can't imagine what benefits would be worth more than my salary. Seems to me like more in salary and less in benefits would appeal to me more.
- zach 18y ago
  Well, the reason employer-sponsored health care took off was that WWII wage controls were still around for years of the post-war economy. Growing employers, auto manufacturers in particular, could not offer higher wages to attract workers. So they offered employer-sponsored health programs and attractive pensions. In the 1970s, when Nixon brought back wage controls, they improved their low-deductible health care plans to no-deductible plans. Here's the scenario. From its boom era, Detroit ended up saddled with lots of pensions, expensive health care, and a special interest which fights cutbacks fiercely. It was basically building up an deficit that, when combined with horrible mismanagement, sent it into tremendous debt and would hobble it when it hit bad economic times and lost access to the capital markets. Does that scenario look familiar? That's about what's happening to the United States. Hey wait, did a presidential hopeful write this op-ed? Hmm.
- redrobot5050 18y ago
  No, see, people have the figure wrong. It costs GM $73/hour for labor because GM is still supporting retirees (that retire early, at age 50) with health care and a 70% salary pension. To cover those costs, for some reason, they cover it as "labor costs", This makes the union look bad, while simultaneously ignoring the fact that GM made tons of crap vehicles nobody wanted and has never tried to innovate.
newsycaccount 18y ago
http://www.prospect.org/csnc/blogs/beat_the_press_archive?month=11&year=2008&base_name=gm_auto_workers_are_not_paid_7 http://www.prospect.org/csnc/blogs/beat_the_press_archive?mo...

Dilpil 18y ago

$73 is labor cost, this includes many things on top of the $30 per hour. This is higher than their competitors but not by as much as it seems.

work_in_the_usa 18y ago

i love how people can't stand the guy who works on the line. This guy or gal works to make a car for you. The customer. This person puts up with all the same bs that you have to put up with on your daily job. He/she was smart to get into the automotive and have a great job. One because they can support their family put their kids through college so their child has more of an education then they do. (that helps out America) and their children can succeed in America and not rely on the automotive to support them. Second,because this person turns around and puts that money they made, right back into their fellow communities. Spending money so others can benefit off of their hard earn money.Thirdly, they can give to charities help out others and do good for their communities. So, why does everyone bug the guy on the line....becasue he makes good money and has no education, so what!!!?? What about the endless managers that leave the office and go golfing on company time that are educated? Or the endless lunches that they never return from that the company has to pay for? Or how they can micro manage everything and make it twice as worse then when they started it. Or the guy who works out of his house and only puts in 3 hours of work in a day. Please give me a break!!! this is not only automotive but it is with every corporation in America! When will the educated people quite ripping off the corporation's so that the people that can't get an education can make a decent living and survive in America and enjoy the American dream!! So please quit wasting your time to find out of much the average line guy makes and start looking into your own company and start making changes!! Why do you have to have a degree to flip hamburgers?? because that is what is happening to us. Quit pointing the fingers and start seeing what every manager and salary person is doing with the company money. Maybe its time to start working different in America, start working for the right reasons.

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