By Doug Cunningham
UAW Vice President Terry Dittes says taxpayers, workers and politicians didn’t bail out General Motors during the Great Recession so they could just decide to destroy U.S. jobs as they pile up massive profits.
The union says GM’s plant closings will potentially impact 35,000 workers, including UAW members and suppliers.
“We did not bail General Motors out so we could watch them hoard profits, shut down plants and devastate communities. And take advantage of low wage workers in Mexico or wherever they see. This should be a tipping point for all of us. It’s time to tell General Motors they need to build product where they sell product,” said Dittes.
DIttes says GM is highly profitable and is on track to make $10 billion this year. And he says with that kind of profit GM should save U.S. jobs.
“We need to tell them, we need to tell them clearly, that we want our products made here because this is where you sell ‘em. And we call on GM as they called on us a decade ago, please save our American jobs.”
The UAW is headed for new contract talks with GM in 2019. The union says it will fight the plant closings GM has announced in Michigan and Ohio.
