Elections

I purposely delayed writing my thoughts on the election until AFTER the vote. I know, i know...there is still a run-off election to be had..but in my opinion it is basically meaningless. Quite honestly i doubt anyone really cares too much about the position of Financial Secretary. Not that it isn't an important position, just that it doesn't really matter to me if our FS is Mr. Dyer or Mr. Alsept. I am sure they are both capable. As for the run-off for President....again I'm just not sure it really matters. Mr. Turner and Mr. Phillips are both good men who are respected throughout the plant. Either will do a fine job and i think that is the prevailing opinion plant wide. Sure they are from different "slates" but come on...we all know that either man will do an effective job as President and will work well with our new SC(shop chairman) regardless of which "slate" they came from.

Now on to the SC posiiton. The election between Mr. Hall and Mr. Harlow was in my opinion disgusting. Two men trading shots at each other, putting out bogus claims in the form of handbills, enlisting past SC's to come to their aid, etc...etc...etc... Make no mistake neither of these men handled the election well. Both got caught up in the mudslinging and it really was a slap in the face to everyone working the line.

Look Mr. Hall we as members of IUE-CWA798 are not idiots just because we work on the floor. We ARE aware that you led us to make MAJOR concessions in order to gain the promise of a future vehicle. Did GM mislead you into bringing us a not so great deal? Did we need to make the concessions to keep our plant open?? The answer to both questions is probably 'Yes'. I feel like we def needed to make the concessions to secure a future for our plant, but i feel like we were duped into making these concessions without a real concrete promise. Bottom line is the concessions made should have been tied directly to the announcement of a future product. Instead of letting management set the table by basically saying "IF you make these concessions THEN we will in turn promise the possibility of future work."...we should have stepped up and said "If you make an announcement of future product THEN these concessions go into affect." Simple as that.

Not so fast Mr. Harlow. We as members of the IUE-CWA798 are NOT idiots just because we work the floor. We ARE aware that you were involved in the bargaining process for the major concessions mentioned above. We ARE aware that your signature is indeed at the bottom of each and every document.


We ARE also aware that you chose not to publicly claim to be against the concessions until it was time to dispense with the usual election propaganda. WE ARE NOT IDIOTS SIR!

The bottomline is one of these two gentlemen had to win the election. Mr. Harlow came away from the election victorious. But that doesnt mean his slate is now clean. Unfortunatly another election is around the corner and even more unfortunatly the future of our plant still hangs on the edge of a cliff. It is now up to Mr. Harlow to put actions behind all his words. Will he continue with the election rhetoric right on into next years election or will he put that all behind and focus on our future?

The election is over, but our future is still very much on the ballot.

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Introduction

WHO I AM

I am just one of the 2400+ auto workers punching the time clock at General Motors Moraine Assembly plant. I am not unlike the majority of my coworkers. My Father worked for and retired from GM. My Grandfather worked for and retired from GM. While i began my GM career as a summer hire in the early 90's, i vowed to never follow in my ancestors footsteps. I was gonna go to college. I was going to get a degree and make something more of myself. I spent the entire summer of '91 cursing everything GM had to offer as i put in 50 + hour work weeks....and a few years later i walked into Moraine Assembly as a full time employee thinking i would be there 5 years max. Twelve years later i sit down in front of this blog looking back at the time that has flown past me....the job assignments, the contracts, the elections, the friendships, the psycho's, the schedule changes, the buyout...the decisions that have shaped not only our plant and our union but also, to a great degree, who i am today. I'm not the same kid i was back in '91. I have grown up. I have become my own person with my own family. I am ONE of 2400+ autoworkers at Moraine Assembly...but chances are I'm not a lot different than you.


WHO I AM NOT

I am not a disgruntled autoworker. While i am not happy with various aspects of our company and Union, i am not here to tear down either. While i do see great value in constructive criticism, i am not here to personally attack or ridicule any Union officer or member.

I am not an English major. While i strive to make this blog professional in appearance, i apologize in advance for any grammatical errors.

I am not anonymous. I am a real person. I have a real name. I am not hiding behind the 'Moraine Auto Worker' screen name. At this point i see no value in revealing my identity, but that is primarily because i doubt that many will ever even read this...and i already know my name. I do intend to reveal myself through my posts...not just my actual name but also a great deal of what i think and believe.

I am not afraid of criticism. I am opening this blog up to reader comments and i will allow anyone to post to this blog. Anyone may email me anything they wish to have posted on this blog and i will post it completely unedited....with obvious exceptions for vulgarities and other blatantly offensive posts. I intend this blog to become a sounding board of ideas from different perspectives, not just my own. Of course the majority of content is going to be coming from myself unless readers participate.


Why Do This

Simple question that really doesn't have a simple answer. I am not really sure why i am doing this to be honest. Basically, i have spent my entire career at GM in anonymity. I have kept my mouth closed and my ideas to myself. I'm tired of being quiet. I want to start a discussion. I want to air my thoughts and ideas and see how they measure up to others. I want to hear the ideas of others. I want to bring attention to issues that typically get swept under the carpet. We are at a critical juncture for both our Union and our company. If we don't speak up now, we may never be heard.
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