Wagner Act = Outsourcing? A possible UAW strike over “local” issues** now threatens the launch of the crucial new version of the mid-size Chevy Malibu. The Detroit Free Press reports:
The Malibu was GM’s second-best selling car in 2011, and LaCrosse was the top-selling vehicle for the Buick brand. The Malibu also is produced at GM’s Detroit-Hamtramck assembly plant.
“The most popular products are going to be where the UAW feels they can solve local issues, because they know the company needs that production,” said Kristin Dziczek, director of the labor and industry group for the Center for Automotive Research.
In other words, the union threatens to screw up production of the most important products because that’s where they have leverage. Gee, why would U.S.-headquartered manufacturers not want to move production back home from overseas so they could go through this kind of experience? … And wouldn’t consumers rush to buy cars built by these dedicated union members? …
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**–Even successful national negotiations with the UAW are followed by what are often teeth-pulling plant-by-plant negotiation over “local” issues, with “skilled trades” sometimes lodging special objections. If you designed a system for maximum inhibition of flexibility, it might be this. It’s one of the things that might have changed in a different kind of auto bailout than the one President Obama engineered.