Ethanol is the devil.

GreenGina8 .... First you complained that GM was not active enough in persuing alternative fuel technologies. When given examples addressing your complaint you turn around and claim that ethanol is not good enough due to corn usage, electric vehicles are no good because of the dirty coal used to make electricity, and finally the Volt apparently isn't the answer either because it uses some gasoline. So what exatly is the answer? You mentioned the use of switch grass as an alternative to corn....so therefore ethanol is an acceptable option to you if switch grass was used instead of corn, yes? Ergo with GM being the leader in the production of vehicles using ethanol GM is doing a good job persuing alternative fuel technologies. I guess(now that I am into this "discussion") my point would be that most of the people doing the complaining about the usage of fossil fuels seem to be the last ones to offer viable alternatives/solutions. By the way, how may I ask are you getting back and forth to work? For the sake of my blood pressure please tell me that you ride a bike or walk!

Rich people and people who want to look like they are rich.

$53,000? According to NADA, the avarage selling price of a new vehicle in the U.S. is $28,400. Who will buy this?

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2008-gm...

a tundra add in the upper left corner. you can't make it up!

thekidd-you are so wrong ,you can get the new hybrid from the dealers.The chevy dealer in Orfordville has them!!! Really a nice lookin' truck...Drive it home for around $ 53,000.00

gm is agressive in the e85 market. which is a complete joke as for reducing our dependance on foreign oil. all its doin is driving the cost of our food and everything else up. as for gm and hybrids. they are aggressive there too, only the aggressiveness is in advertising and PR. they want you to think theyre with the leaders on that. go ask any gm dealer how soon til they get their first hybrid/electric vehicle. even if the yukon/tohoe hybrid was relatively available, yer talkin about spendin several thousand dollars more for the hybrid to boost your mpg's by a relatively insignificant amount.

It must be of interest to several thousand area people (including yourself apparently, if you search for distant papers to find more info), so they keep printing the updates (not rewrites). Just be happy that when they do print it here, you won't have to do those searches.

I find it funny that this story keeps showing up in this paper every couple of months. How many times can you rewrite a story that big SUV sales continue to decline? I did a search of the Dallas Morning News and the Fort Worth Telegram (the two cities that Arlington is in the middle of). They seem to have plenty of other stuff going on that they don't have to continuely recycle news about an assembly plant in their area.

ekim8404,
I absolutely agree with your last statement. Ultimately we have to reduce our consumption. Higher CAFE standards also won't help with the current problems.

unkbd-yes, I have, but it's not enough. Also, I don't agree with making ethanol out of corn, either. There are other, more efficient plants that produce more energy per unit than corn. Switch grass is by far, a better fuel source than corn.
Have you seen "Who Killed the Electic Car?". It is sad.
On another note, it doesn't matter if you have an electric car if the electricity comes from a dirty coal fired power plant. One doesn't balance out the other.
That volt might be great on gas milage, but the point is to make cars that use NO gasoline.

clouds555,
How long has it been since the chevette was made? Newer vehicles are much safer. You would have to spend hundreds of dollars extra every year for fuel, "just in case" you get in an accident, not to mention the increased cost of the truck itself.

Large vehicles provide an allusion of safety. They can have less visibility, and not everyone knows how to drive a 5000-6000 pound SUV safely to avoid an accident.

Thanks DDoright! It's nice to get info from the inside.

unkbd:
GM has admitted that their slowness in developing a hybrid was a mistake. I know about the Volt...2010?, give me a break. Ethanol, at least America's corn version, is a joke and a boondogle for Americans and will do little to reduce foreign dependency on oil. To be honest the problems are not the car companies, it's Americans attitudes towards driving and entitlement that have to led our current problems, so take a look in the mirror.

500 trucks per shift is 1000 trucks per day. Assuming the avg pay of the GM worker is 50k a year and another 50k per year for insurance and benefits. That is 2 trucks sold to every worker. That is say 2 weeks production to account for 3,000 workers. Lets assume you have 3,000 workers retired from GM Janesville and you have to pay them as well so double it again. That means A full month of production will account for all employee pay, benefits, insurance. They only have to pay to keep the lights on, they are only making money from Janesville to pay for their other factories.

The biggest issue in GM Janesville is management, they seek to blame the suppliers for all things that go wrong. They tell them they are shipping garbage and the suppliers end up walking the line and finding the source of the damage. Some material handlers get busy and don't pay attention to how they handle parts and cause damage. When it arrives at the line the line stops for who knows how long until its sorted out. Some just ram the parts around the whole shift, then you wonder why there are scratches or dents on parts. Even some fo the racks don't secure all the parts allowing them to fall out when handled that way and get damaged. It all goes back on the supplier proving they delivered a sound part.

There are a slew of issues that have to be taken care of there. Maybe its a good reason for some to buy foreign. They just fail to realize that 50% or more of all sales go directly to the corporation or more and if its foriegn it means you just sent your money out of the US. Then they wonder why the economy is failing.

Thanks, Ddoright! Now I know.

unkbd, your numbers are close.

Presently I do 55 jobs per hour minimum. I say minimum becaue the line is actually set higher to make up for the fact that we have 2-14 min. breaks and a ½ hour lunch which has to be made up. We work 10 hour shifts but with the breaks factored in we work 9. Currently we are not working Fridays but we did for about 7 years straight with occasional Saturdays.

That said, my job is timed to 55 seconds of work per minute. I go from job to job as do most people that work on the line. Prior to the lay-off due to the American Axle strike we were building right around 520 trucks per shift.

On a side note, the article states that Silao also builds what we do but that's not quite right. From what we are told they can bulid about every 5th vehicle one of ours but currently they are not building what we do at all. They are doing pick-ups.

I believe most of the truck platform is doing the line speed slow-down. But according the Arlington website they are doing an increase of about 1 job per hour. Also, their schedule, they work 9 hours Monday thru Thursday, and 8.5 on Fridays. But they build the hybrids and they are probably selling a few more than we do right now. When we left GM had 197 (+ or - some) days on hand and the number had increased steadily over the last few months.

SarahB, the bar, Zachows, is in fact not on GM property and is fenced off. It hasn't always been fenced but it is now. They have been a thorn in GM's side for years. GM has offered to buy it on numerous occasions for what I would imagine is a tidy sum but they have not sold.

I have no doubt that GM employees work hard. With that old plant, the conditions can't be inviting either ... I would imagine it's cold in the winter and hot in the summer. I also figure that quite a few of the workers feel stress over the latest reports about GM sales. I know as a Rock County resident, the news troubles me because it has the potential to cause lots of economic problems for the majority of us. I only have one question however. I am not originally from Janesville and I don't know anyone who works at the plant, so I am serious here and hoping to get a straight answer. Here it is: WHAT IS WITH THE BAR RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF THE PARKING LOT?

Zoom...Yes I work at GM, and have knowledge of the process. The numbers I used in my example may not be precise down to the second but they are fair.

Ekim8404...GM has not refused to build a Hybrid vehicle. A little research goes a long way.

GreenGina8...Have you ever heard of E85? Hydrogen Fuel Cells? Even electric/gas hybrids? GM is producing the most vehicles of any manufacturer with E85 technology. There are Mass Transit Vehicles being tested in major metropolitan areas of Washington DC and New York(if I remember correctly) at this very moment using Hydrogen Fuel Cells. And the Chevy Volt which is in development now and will be available in 2010 will be the most fuel efficient vehicle ever with a range of 600 miles per gallon of gas. Please don't spout off about GM not making use of alternative fuels. Instead, go to GM.com and take a look at the Volt, and the number of E85 vehicles available, and the strides GM is going to to reduce foreign oil dependancy. And take Ekim8404 with you.

I knew, of course, you were exaggerating, tickle-and that doesn’t add anything to the forum. I think misinterpreting this information, or especially totally misrepresenting information, does nothing for goodwill building with your fellow citizens, either. We need to base what we say on facts, or at least ask if anyone knows (whatever). The forum rules say you can ask questions. But outrageous exaggerations stated as fact do nothing to promote good public relations.
But anyway, I don’t think anyone “feels bad” for those laid off GM workers. They do get good pay when laid off because of parts shortages due to someone else’s strike.....but not when the strike is their own. And of course, if employees are striking against their own employer-who in their right mind would expect them to get paid by that same company? And they don’t. Nor are they eligible for unemployment. Not a penny. As it should be. But the days of Scrooge are gone, and we better protect the rights we have to bargain or they will come back. I think bargaining is a tool that you have because you live in the US-but it’s also a responsibility. Who thinks that an employer (or an employee) should be able to act with impunity?
And cardtrader-you mentioned the anatomy kissing the union does toward the employee. Well what do you think? The union gets a portion of the worker’s pay. I, for sure, would expect at least a little snuggle now and then.

whybesad:

Auto manufactures,for the most part, manufacture vehicles that consumers want to buy. The era of cheap gas might be over-but there are consumers that will continue to buy large vehicles.

Practicality is a nonissue. Who is to define what is practical and what is not.

I agree with you regarding ANWAR and refinery capacity. The US needs more capacity-a lot more.

However, Russ Feingold, Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, and democrats like them tell us we need to be weened off foreing oil but these same people who pander the union vote are held hostage by militant enviromentalists.

Not to many people can afford $50,000 trucks. Let alone fill them up with gas. Maybe if we as a country would build a refinery or two and start to drill for oil in ANWAR we could afford to drive those big SUV's. They are nice vehicles but, they aren't real practical for the average joe.

RUSerious, for someone who is neither a retiree or GM employee, you sure do seem to know a lot about the specific workings of that plant. Maybe I exagerated the time, but she does bring tabloids to work every day and has enought time to read them. I get fed up with GM employees who are always complaining when their contract comes up for a vote because they want everything and are not willing to give up anything. There was a few comments posted about feeling bad for the employees who get laid off. Not only do they get unemployment, they get supplemental as well so they are making close to the same amount per week, whether they work or get laid off, and they still have their benefits. I know most people would prefer to work than be laid off, but I sure wish I could get laid off for a few weeks, get the same amount of pay, and not have to blow my vacation time.

Well let’s get this straight, tickle. Your friend reads tabloids, etc, nearly half a day for each 10 minutes of work she does? So-she works half days? She works 10 minutes every half day? Or is it 10 minutes in a full day? Or 20? Or what? Please elaborate for clarification. If she works on the line, she would be doing her bit on each vehicle as it (until the slow-down) would be passing her at about 1 car every 1 minute and 10 seconds. Even if she just touched each vehicle as it passed, and if she indeed worked full days, that would take her at least ten minutes. I can’t imagine this local plant building over 500 vehicles a day if each person, or just quite a few people, put 1 second of work into each vehicle. Do you know they do time tests and change job specifications accordingly? Each vehicle requires nearly a minute’s work per person as it passes. I’m sure there is free time, (there is necessary space between vehicles.), but half a day reading? She must be management. (joke)
Want me to tell you stories I heard from MY friend?
Coffeeman, you ask “Why has NO ONE else come up with this engineering?” Maybe they “discovered” it, maybe others will follow suit. Everything starts somewhere. I think most average citizens will hope, along with you, that it comes to something. That might force the hands of those who produce vehicles.

Has anyone heard of the German car called the "Loremo AG"? Introduced this past month in Geneva Switzerland. 2 cylcinder car that gets up to 157 miles per gallon on diesel. Goes up to 99 miles per hour. It will start at a base price of $13,000 U.S. dollars and will begin production in 2010 world wide. Seats 2-4 passengers. Why has NO ONE else come up with this engineering? It is no wonder U.S. auto manufacturers are behind. I also heard that the U.S. manufacturers were not too happy because it could put Americans out of work. Get with the 21st Century and maybe we won't lose jobs. (This car drove from New York to L.A. on 3 stops for fuel.

I know someone who works at GM and she spends almost half her day reading tabloids and doing crossword puzzles in between the 10 minutes it takes her to do her part of the line. The fact of the matter is that GM employess get paid well, get great benefits, and do less work than most people who put in a 40 hour week. As a result, the average price for a car is $23,000+. I'm not saying all GM employees don't work hard, because some do. I'm saying that from the stories I have heard from my friend, most employees have it pretty easy there.

If gm workers take a cut why dont local officials take some cuts in wages to drop some of our taxes. If you people think the price of a vehicle will go down think again. wake up people

rusty,
That makes no sense. How can GM, or any other manufacturer, "force" you to buy a vehicle? There have always been alternatives.

Toyota hasn't been making ginormous SUV's nearly as long as GM, but they certainly caught up when gas was cheap and they became a symbol of status. The big SUV market is now shrinking, for everybody.

rusty:

I own a Yukon. No one forced me to buy it.

I'm certainly NOT an expert on GM, but I rather suspect that part of their problems stem from the fact that they have been "forcing" big gas guzzlers down the consumers throats for too many years. I'm sure they have the capability to make vehicles much more fuel efficient but just don't want to.

Also a problem is that the cost, to the consumer, of a new vehicle is getting beyond the reach of many of us "common" folk

...should have said "Ginormous SUV's are falling out of favor for those that really don't use them for what they were intended."

As the article states, the market for these vehicles is shrinking. The slowdown at Janesville GM has little to do with price, quality or design when compaired to similar vehicles from other manufacturers.

Ginormous SUV's are falling out of favor those that really don't use them for what they were intended. They were built to haul a lot of people and tow a lot of weight. When you drive around today, look at how many have only one person inside. How many do you see actually towing something? The days of driving a full size SUV solely as a status symbol are coming to an end.

Would GM make more money overall if they didn't make gas guzzlers? What's the hold up on switching to alternative fuel sources? GM, please, companies like yours keep the US dependent on fossil fuels, regardless of their source.

unkbd,
Do you have actual knowledge of the work being done at GM, or did you just make that example up?

I have read nothing in the Gazette that suggests workers will have to work "harder". I suspect people might have do more "steps" in the production process, but that doesn't automatically mean they have to work faster. Until someone admits to having actual knowledge about the production process at GM, I see a lot of assumptions being made.

I also haven't seen a post here from someone complaining about the work load. Why are we even talking about it? If they are complaining, I would attribute that as a reaction to change...sometimes the adjustment takes time, even though the work being done isn't more difficult.

earn: 1 a: to receive as return for effort and especially for work done or services rendered.
.

They "earned" it through work and negotiations.
The history class it was in is called "labor history."

The fact is, current benefits were negotiated fairly a long time ago, when things were good. How can anyone blame workers for that? The UAW may have strong armed the big 3 back then, but things are changing.

The high paying jobs are being replaced with pay and benefits more in line with other manufacturing industries. Complaining about how much more someone else makes in a similar job comes across as childish to me.

Frankly, I don't think GM builds any cars people are getting "excited" about, nor have they for some time. The new Tahoes and Suburbans are very nice, but are overpriced luxury vehicles. GM's refusal to develop a hybrid, partnered with swiftly rising gas prices not to mention the massive credit crunch and impending recession have severly hampered the American fascination with buying cars they couldn't afford, which is how major companies build their fortune. They reap what they sow.

Prounion, you wrote:
"Your right etown getting paid while laid off is not a perk, its a right we have earned, even if don't actually work for our pay while we are laid off."

Are you serious? What part of the bill of rights is that in? Seem to have missed that in history class. Obviously the union bargained for that and I have no problem with it. I just find it funny that you use say you "earned" it.

In the last few posts I read about GMs presumed high profits. The UAW(long ago) negotiated a profit sharing benefit. If you think that GM has made big profits I ask you to think again, and ask a GM employee what he/she got for a profit sharing check over the past 4 years.
RUSerious makes some very good and valid points. GaryPrimer you mention that GM thinks that high wages and good benefits are dragging the company down. Though GM may think this, the reality is that until the new Malibu, redesigned Silverado and some of the "cross over" vehicles came out GM wasn't building a vehicle that the public could get excited about. Low sales = low/no profits. If the people ain't buyin what your sellin it doesn't matter what you compensate your employees. Your financial situation is in the crapper.
On the subject of the line slow down here is how I see it.
The guy/gal on the line right now has a specific job to do in a specific amount of time(lets say 1min 20 sec). If they slow the line down that person has more time to do that job(actual increase of the slowdown will be about 30 sec per job ---> 1min 50sec). Now you take away employees through the buy out/retirement program and don't replace them. That same guy/gal now has to do their job plus part or all of the job that the buyout guy had. So the guy that stayed now does his job@1Min 20sec plus the job of the buyout guy @ 1Min 20sec so total time to do two jobs ought to be 2min 40 sec, but the line slow down only added 30sec to the original job. So guy is now doing two jobs in (80sec+80sec=160sec.....160sec-110sec=50sec) 50 seconds less time than what used to be alloted for the original two jobs and they are calling it one job. There.....Clear as mud but I hope you get my point....less people same amount of work to be done = more work per person. But they are slowing the line down to help accomodate having more work to do.

That would be fine with me.

Well, mytake, I agree with you, too, up to a point. But let’s face it, you know as well as I do that it would be illogical to expect all people in all jobs to be paid the same or, in many cases, even nearly the same. Who’d want to work harder, get a higher education, or even try to get ahead if, in the end, it wouldn’t pay? And how could they? One thing I don’t understand, though, is that a couple of you have complained about GM employees hating GM at the same time they’re bragging AND complaining about their wages. How does that work?
Are vehicles, GM’s included but far from alone, priced too high? Very likely. I sure can’t afford (a new) one. Are GM workers’ wages too high? Maybe, but not when you consider the profits of their employer. And you can bet the men at the top will still get their millions and millions no matter what happens. Did one lead to the other (high vehicle cost, high profits, high wages)? Which came first, the chicken or the egg? But, I still say, an employee of the circus peanut vender cannot expect to make the same as an employee of the circus owner. One is not necessarily a better person (not because of his wages anyway), but if you want everyone to have the same as the next person, and no chance for anything more than the next person, try communism. But then they’d own the factory, too, as well as the farm, bakers, and candlestick makers. Then complain about the prices.
And, if you have GM friends who brag about their “status”, you need better find different friends because they aren’t friends. You can find “I’m better than you” attitudes, as well as “I have it pretty tough” attitudes from people in all walks of life. GM people don’t dominate either of those attitude problems, but I’m sure you’ll find some of both among them. You’d also find some pretty decent, caring people. Probably more of that kind. I think it might depend on where you meet them. Maybe the ones you meet are far different than the ones I meet because of that. I don’t know. Maybe it’s all in the way individuals perceive things.

So garyprimer, are you saying that GM should take one where the sun doesn't shine just so Janesville's economy doesn't suffer?

It seems to me that GM thinks that high wages and good benefits are dragging down the company. I truly wish that was not the case. Once those jobs are gone, they are gone forever and the local economy will suffer.

ruserious....some of your points may have been valid and you express your self in a dignified manner. the problem i and many have is not with someone getting a FAIR wage, but with a segment of the work force getting paid such high wages when many working joe's just get by. this translates to high cost of the product which keeps it out of our/their reach. this would still be tolerable but then you have many(not all) uaw workers who hate gm, have a better than you attitude, and flaunt their wages to everyone. they b****, moan, and complain to anyone within listening distance. the bottom line is that uaw/gm workers get paid too much and gm makes too much profit. if everyone is concerned about buying american/union then uaw workers should only buy gas for their BIG trucks that is drilled from american wells, refined at american refineries, bought at american/local owned gas stations with american citizen employees. if you are not doing that then you are only blowing smoke with the buy american/union slogan. again ruserious, thanks for your insight.

Well, cardtrader. I don’t think it’s a good idea to be giving away pieces of your mind-especially to me. But why should I get a piece of your mind anyway for something you are obviously choosing to read (see GM in a headline-don’t read it!) in a newspaper that is choosing to print it? Can I complain to you this summer when I tire of hearing baseball details on tv, radio, and newspapers? (Talk about an overpaid group of people!) Nor do any GM workers deserve your pieces of mind-they (as far as I know) did not ask to be the subject of any of those articles you are so mad about. And they are just plain people, like you and I. They are made up of the good, the bad, and the in between. How can you be angry at them all? Big business always attracts attention. And, logically, high profit businesses would be the ones to pay high wages. I have nothing against fast food, or dollar stores, but for comparison sake, wouldn’t it seem odd if people who produced or sold items worth $1, or $5, or even $100’s would make the same wages as those whose products sold for thousands of dollars? And go ahead and tell me their cost is over-inflated, they’re still worth many times more than burgers and off brand soap, even if prices were cut in half. (...and you won’t find me arguing against lower prices for anything.) Think of other industries that have very high profits, and check into the pay scale for those who produce those products. They are generally going to be much higher than minimum wage. If workers didn’t get good wages, where do you think those profits would go? And who’d build an SUV for $8 an hour when he/she could, for example, work somewhere in clean surroundings and air conditioned comfort, or choose another job for those wages? If we had a coal mine or oil wells here, you’d be hearing about them. I don’t know what you do for a living, cardtrader, but if you are a valuable employee, I’d respect you if you were paid minimum wage, $10 an hour or $30 an hour, but you cannot be angry forever at those who make more.
And no, I am neither a GM worker, nor a retiree. What are you?

heck,the way things are going with gas shooting up we won't have to worry about gm anymore, they won't be here to sell their high priced gas guzzling suv's......

Buy the way Ruserious what are you a GM employee or retiree?

R.U Serious It's like this ever since I've moved to this wonderful state all I ever here about is G.M and all of there problems, what about the rest of the world out there that is busting there backside for 1/3 the pay and zero benefits working 60+ hours a week to just get buy, What I'm mad as hell about is the ass kissing the union does to keep all of it's workers happy, from 90% paid time off, to 4 day work weeks while the rest of the working world can barely get buy they don't make the paper everyday. Let's give some respect to the people that make the parts that are sent to g.m or the people that are represented by UAW that don't get the backing G>M employees get namely LSI. TNT, just to name a few. So as long as they want to write about the problems being faced by GM employees and not the rest oF Janesville and sourronding communities you will get a piece of my mind.. Real working class people

Well, yes. It’s not related to pay per hour. I’m not praising or denigrating, I’m just saying.....it’s related to how many people will be working on how many cars. If 30 % fewer people will be working on 15% fewer cars (an hour), something’s got to change somewhere. In order to accomplish that, it would seem that those people would need to do what they have always done, as well as what those 30% of retired/bought-out workers used to do, so they would need more time. But, the goal is presumably to make fewer cars. Seems to me, both things will be covered.

Less humans...... MORE ROBOTS.... GM is putting about 20 new robots during this time off.On a good note some jobs have been saved,you now have to have a hire date of 2000 not 1998.These trucks will sell just not as fast as everyone would like.I like my truck and will keep it even when gas is $4.00/gallon.BUY AMERICAN/UNION MADE!!!

Or should I say, working just as hard but not necessarily harder.

Gotcha. I thought someone was implying that a slowdown actually meant more work.

Yes, they do pay by the hour. This was all in response to someone implying that less vehicles meant less work.
That's not the case. They've got less vehicles and less people to build them. They'll still be working just as hard.

Don't they still pay by the hour....not per vehicle?

I may be crazy.

Well, wisconsinheat, the point is, work is being added to individual people's JOBS (because fewer people will be working, there will be fewer job stations with more things for a worker to do at each one)-but each VEHICLE (not job) requires the same work. So they have to slow the line down to accommodate the individual’s increased workload. It also amounts to fewer vehicles, of course, which is also a goal right now.
garyprimer: You may be right. Remember when they donated all those bicycles to Madison? Maybe they should have hung on to them awhile longer-they could have eventually been worth their weight in gas right here.

If gas hits four dollars, you won't have anything left to argue about.

"Each vehicle will require the same amount of work, and there will be fewer people to do it."
.
But more time to do it in.

The article doesn't say that people will be doing more work to each truck. I suspect that's not an accident, however, it is the truth.

Each vehicle will require the same amount of work, and there will be fewer people to do it. So, they will be adding to everyone's job, which will slow down the line.

I'd be willing to bet that once people are used to doing their new jobs that GM will speed the line up a bit and the Gazette won't write a story about that.

You are right, Zoom, that personally attacking (strong word-attacking) someone is off topic, and I regretted doing that to cardtrader to some degree. However, it was a reaction to cardtrader’s constant picking at GM and its employees, generally without merit because he (or she) seems to confuse the different circumstances under which GM workers can be laid off, how and why they get paid when they are laid off, and other GM worker related “stuff”. I did feel that I was stooping to his (or her) level to some degree (not entirely) when I commented; however, I did sincerely mean what I said. But you’re right-it was personal (in a way), so off topic. Sorry. I did include on-topic material, though.
The article doesn’t say the jobs will have more work; many workers have said it has been happening. The line, of course, is slowing down for lack of sales, but right now, of course, production is also affected by the American Axle strike. Cardtrader is apparently angry that the GM workers will not suffer to the degree he thinks they should because of this strike they have no control over. But line-speed slowdown does not mean the workers will now be taking it easy-the past and future anticipated retirements/buyouts will also mean fewer workers to share the work. Each vehicle will still require the same amount of work.

Your right etown getting paid while laid off is not a perk, its a right we have earned, even if don't actually work for our pay while we are laid off.

Attacking someone personally is off topic...not that I haven't done it once or twice.

Where does the article say people will be doing more work? The line is slowing down, and people have been laid off or taken a buyout.

The slow down will be a trend for the forseable future, unfortunately. The article says truck sales are down 8% compared to car sales.

cardtrader, this GM thing is eating you alive. I’d suggest, for your well-being, and possibly the well-being of employees of GM (I don’t mean to suggest that you care about that, but I mean, well- the old term “going postal” comes to mind), you stop reading anything GM related. And you know what? I’m seriously concerned about how you jump on every story, or blog, related to GM. My theory: you were turned down for a job there, or were fired for some infraction, or simply, you hate an individual who works there..
Now-to the story: etown is right, of course. Slowing the line down does not mean the work will be getting easier-it will mean fewer people will be doing the same amount of work as was already being done. Remember, people are being laid off, but also they’re hoping to “lose” people due to the latest retirement/buy-out offer. If fewer people will be doing more work, and many future workers will be doing it for less money-will you then be happy? Will you then consider it a “real” job? (reference from an earlier post). What do you consider a “real” job, and reasonable pay to compensate for it? There is some reason that you resent the company, its autos, its workers, their union, and anything related to Janesville’s GM plant. I don’t know exactly what it is, but it’s beyond the norm.

Yes, it's definitely a perk that people are getting laid off so more can be piled on the people that still have a job.

Oh, wait, that's not a perk at all.

Sounds like another G.M perk