Last week GM announced yet another round of buyouts due to a reported $38.7 billion loss.Greed has put American automakers in a compromising position. You can point to disloyal Americans buying foreign cars, but it boils down to the very foundation of this country.
Competition is good for the economy and the consumer. America is country that prides itself in a "free market". Consequently, you cannot wish away foreign companies simply because it may force Americans out of a job. There is only one thing we can do...compete.
Many blue-collar workers were pulling in $58 thousand per year. While providing this generous income, GM created a product that foreign car companies have all but eclipsed in quality and safety. Had they been able to compensate their employees based on work quality, as non-union companies do, they could've paid their workers a reasonable wage and put the remaining funds into building a more competitive product.
There is plenty of blame to go around for the decline of General Motors, but the UAW could've gone a long way to help the situation and the future of the company. Instead of holding out a hand and demanding more and more money, the UAW should have realized that the money tree would eventually die if no one watered it.
