Edmunds.com | Inside Line | Auto Observer Your Account | Help | Directory
You are here:
![[F]](http://a332.g.akamai.net/f/332/936/12h/www.edmunds.com/media/townhall/webxicons/site.gif){kind=small}
Forums
Automotive News & Views What about the future of Ford Inc?? 
1858 messages, Last post on Oct 16, 2006 at 7:25 AM
You are in the Automotive News & Views Forum. Your Hosts are steve_ & claires
|
Replying to: dhanley (Oct 09, 2006 10:56 am)
|
|
|
Replying to: nvbanker (Oct 09, 2006 7:25 pm)  I understand y'alls point. The situation of being a small buisness or work for a small buisness is alot different than a large corporation. A large corporation can turn a few billion into multi-billions through investing. They have the ins and outs of the market, because of resources. I've always have said the best buisness approach for the Big 3 and UAW, would become lean. Offer the UAW workers $50 or $60 bucks an hour w/ ZERO benefits. The company could eliminate thousands more jobs because they would no longer need HR people to run them. Those people collect a large salary and use benefits. I know Microsoft in the past used this approach and it works because a corporation can afford to pay more upfront and save by eliminating or not needing the excess people. I've said before my dad and I have talked a great deal about the cost savings and benefits for the employees and company. I've proposed this idea to my union, to not only benefits me but to save you tax payers money. GM, and Ford, for example is paying around $19 an hour for temp workers. Tell those new workers you will pay them $40 or $50 bucks an hour with zero benefits like they have now and I guarantee you'd have a buncha happy workers and it would save GM, Billions in benefits What I mean is GM, claims it costs them $81 an hour per veteran employee. Ford, has similar claims. I have the perfect fix that would pass in the union halls. Say alright here's $50 or $60 bucks an hour zero benefits, we can then eliminate "X" amount of overhead and y'all are happy and we are happy.  I guess I should be CEO, right.  Rocky
|
|
|
the concept of the company pension, it just seems to me that the companies make promises they cannot financially afford to keep...just like when an individual charges his credit cards, then loses his job, and files Chapter 7, basically voiding his prior promises to pay, Ford/GM do not seem to be making enough $$$ to pay everything they promised...since their suppliers will cut them off if they do not pay, which would cause forced liquidation in about 2 days, they have no choice but to work with the one variable that really can be varied...dump employees, cut benefits, cut pensions, because, if they don't, then there will be NOTHING left and no reason for the company to continue operations... What you are really seeing is the slow death of the welfare state, where the workers actaully depended on the company to take care of them, shirking their responsibility for their own lives, and now that sugar daddy (GM/Ford/Delta/etc) cannot live up to the inflated promises of the past...so, in order to survive, you jettison the only things you can, and everyone learns a lesson... And while this is a perfect time to throw in something about the unions strangling the American employment market with their insane demands of pay for unskilled labor, but I will remain silent on that issue...
|
|
|
Replying to: rockylee (Oct 10, 2006 4:59 am) Medical Insurance Programs to direct union members health. Retirement Programs to fund union members after work. Microsoft employees are capable of working out their own answers to money management, health insurance, & retirement programs due to a higher level of education as required in their work. I look forward to the day when all union members are of such apptitude enabling them to be more independent. 
|
|
Geeze, the State of NJ cannot even afford to fully fund the public employees pension right now. How do you expect car companies that are bleeding red?
|
|
|
Replying to: mschmal (Oct 10, 2006 10:58 am)
|
|
|
I'm worried about Ford, I'm confused about Ford, I'm thinking the best thing for Ford would be for ALL of the Ford family to get out of management altogether and let some new talent run that company. It's all over the place!! You have a mega-hit with the Mustang, AGAIN, creating the retro market in other companies now. And the product is very very good. They still produce IMO, the best pickup trucks and SUVs in the market (by design, at least). Then, they produce the 500 and the Fusion. I'm at odds with the world on these, because I rather like the 500 on the inside, and I hate the Fusion on the inside. Both need an engine they just can't get going. Both are butt ugly cars to me. The Focus is languishing like an old old lady in a rest home. Mercury and Lincoln are a sad parody of their past now. Probably one decision I think was a good one was holding on to the Panther cars, since the rest of the world gave up RWD sedans years ago. Ford has made a haul off of taxi and police cars and livery service for the Town Car. These cars are indestructable, cheap to buy, cheap to run, dead bang reliable, and fully depreciated so the profit margin on them is terrific. I see Mr. Mullaly, as one of his first edicts, put his hand up to stop the sword of death that Bill had imposed on this line of cars, and saved them from being killed after 07. Smart move, since they are a major provider of income for the company. When Jacques Nasser was President of Ford, contributions to the Republican party were large, nothing to Bill Clinton's party. Now, Bill Ford supports the Environmentalists and every gay cause he can find out about. So, the politics have certainly changed. OTOH, Nasser was a diversity king, and got rid of as many white male engineers as he could, in favor of "diversity". Unfortunately, some of these engineers knew what they were actually doing, and now work for Toyota, who is looking for more Anglo faces in their otherwise Asian crowd of employees. As I said, this company is schitzophrenic. I can't figure them out. I still have a soft spot in my heart for them, but I don't know who they are anymore..... 
|
|
|
|
|
Replying to: marsha7 (Oct 10, 2006 10:26 am) I thought the banks had gotten the congress to change what could be discharged through bankuptcy and credit cards weren't part of that any more. So if someone charges lots of auto accessories on their credit card it will have to be paid? |
|
|
Replying to: marsha7 (Oct 10, 2006 10:26 am) That's too harsh. I wouldn't say that workers "shirked" their responsibility to plan for retirement...it's more like the company put forward proposals relating to pensions, medical benefits, etc., the union agreed to them, and the contract was created. The workers depended on the contract. What happened is that no one - the workers, union or company management - foresaw the day when non-unionized transplant operations would capture a siginificant share of the market for brand-new vehicles in the United States. Now GM, Ford and Chrysler must shrink to reflect their reduced status in the U.S., but their obligations aren't shrinking in tandem. |
|
|
Replying to: fintail (Oct 10, 2006 11:00 am) |
|
You are here:
Forums
Automotive News & Views What about the future of Ford Inc??
New? Join Now!
Forum Tools
Search Forums
Browse by Vehicle
Browse by Board
Browse by Topic
Today's Chats
