June 14, 2010 2:02 PM
Gettelfinger says organizing fight will go on
By Dee-Ann Durbin and Tom Krisher
AP Auto Writers
(AP) —
United Auto Workers President Ron Gettelfinger said Monday the union
will continue to fight for federal card-check legislation that would
make it easier for workers to organize, a high priority for the UAW as
it continues to lose thousands of members.
In his final speech to the UAW after eight years as president,
Gettelfinger also urged members to back union-friendly candidates in the
November elections, saying conservative politicians showed their
contempt for the UAW last year when they opposed the government's
bailout of General Motors Co. and Chrysler Group L.L.C.
"They were willing to let the industry collapse in order to destroy us,"
said Gettelfinger, who got a warm ovation from more than a thousand UAW
members attending the union's quadrennial convention.
Otherwise, Gettelfinger said little about his hopes for the future of
the 75-year-old union, which will choose a new president this week.
Longtime UAW Vice President Bob King is expected to be elected, although
he is facing a challenge from workers angry about wage concessions made
while Gettelfinger was UAW chief.
Under Gettelfinger, GM, Chrysler and Ford Motor Co. workers agreed to
cut wages in half to $14 an hour for new hires, and also took other pay
and benefit cuts. Gettelfinger didn't mention those concessions
specifically, but said that the UAW did the best it could during one of
the darkest times in its history. He said the union asked for
concessions from its own workers as well.
"We faced these challenges and charted a course that led our great union
down a path to survival," he said. "Leaner, yes, but stronger, wiser and
more determined as well."
As a result of the union's sacrifices, he said, the U.S. auto
industry is again profitable and gaining U.S. market share. GM will soon
be the first automaker to assemble a subcompact car in the U.S., he
said, a decision made because wages have become more competitive.
"There is strong evidence that the worst is behind us and the industry
is clearly rebounding," he said.
Gettelfinger added that more buyers are considering domestic brands
after Toyota Motor Co.'s safety recalls earlier this year.
Gettelfinger acknowledged that the union has been losing membership at
an alarming rate. There are now 355,000 active UAW members, down from a
high of 1.5 million in 1979. He said the union, which recently organized
2,500 workers at the Foxwoods Resort Casino in Connecticut, continues to
look for members outside of the auto industry.
The card-check legislation, also called the Employee Free Choice Act,
would allow workers to join a union simply by filling out a card. It has
been a priority for unions, but recently got a setback when a
union-backed candidate was defeated in an Arkansas primary by Democratic
Sen. Blanche Lincoln, who opposes the legislation.
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