Comments on: Alternatives to Layoffs in Recession – Why Aren’t They Used?

By: Mneiae

Mneiae — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 14:19:18 +0000

Yes, UAW did not ask or agree for wages to be cut. There are a lot of reasons for wages to be sticky. It’s also more comfortable for the company to layoff people than for them to negotiate a lower salary with them. Speaking as the daughter of a UAW member, the union has agreed to several cost-cutting moves. For one thing, the college tuition benefits from the UAW-Ford Scholarship Program for Dependent Children? They’re gone. It was $885 per year for retirees, aka victims of the Ford layoffs, but it was a nice, small source of money. Everyone’s heard about Ford’s VEBA thing and Ford is auditing its employees to ensure that it is only covering those who can indisputably be proven to be covered by the Ford plan.

By: Atkins

Atkins — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 01:28:41 +0000

IBM is laying workers off even though it is profitable — and not just a little, but enough that the stock went up last time earnings were announced. The issue there is an apparent management goal to continue driving the stock up by pushing costs down. Jobs are being moved overseas to places where wages are significantly lower, like India. It appears to me that American IBMers will have to accept some sort of pay reductions until they come level with India, Brazil, etc. Currently the employees are very angry about this but are not doing anything more effective than having a tantrum.

By: Mr. ToughMoneyLove

Mr. ToughMoneyLove — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 06:20:53 +0000

Curt: There is lots of history of unions causing more harm to their members by taking unrealistic positions.

Kay: I’m sorry that happened to your husband. The question is whether his employer had any real alternatives short of terminating a lot of employees.

By: Kay

Kay — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 02:31:44 +0000

My husband’s job reduced everyone’s pay by no longer paying a portion of health insurance. Our income was significantly impacted (7.5% decrease) and now the fear is that we will never see this benefit returned. They also cut back on vacation days and paid holidays.I would almost prefer that he got laid off and found a different employer. He really struggles with going to work now.

By: Curt

Curt — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 16:32:46 +0000

Excellent article. I was just talking about this with a friend of mine who is a Union carpenter. He has been laid off since November, alone with 850 others, yet the Union has no intention of reducing hourly wages – which are only renewed every three years and are much to high for todays housing market collapse.

By: Funny about Money

Funny about Money — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 16:04:18 +0000

You have to fight so hard to get a raise and work so long to be eligible for one, people naturally resist accepting cuts in pay. Also, for most people the cost of living expands to fill the amount of pay available. So, a cut in pay means increased personal debt, less likelihood of retirement or of a decent amount saved to keep one going in one’s senility, and an immediate cut in one’s standard of living. I don’t think it’s surprising that union members (who, after all, join a union to negotiate higher wages) vote against pay cuts. Especially when our Congressional leaders vote themselves a pay raise and the very crooks who helped bring about this mess are walking off with HUGE bonuses.

By: MasterPo

MasterPo — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 01:07:26 +0000

I found out today that my company let go several highly experienced managers on the manufacturing side. These were guys who had been with the company for decades and really know the business. Real make-things-happen people. But they were at the higher end of the pay scale so it was simply a cost cutting manuver.

Of course, I don’t see how getting rid of your most experienced and best performers will help you weather the storm and stay strong. But perhaps that’s why I’m not an executive (said tongue-in-cheek).