Ford (F) Agreement With UAW Pressures GM (F)

Ford (F) has come to an agreement with the UAW which will cut the car company’s costs enough so that it can afford to pass on taking any money from the federal government to operate until it can break even.

According to Reuters, “The modifications will protect jobs for UAW members by ensuring the long-term viability of the company,” UAW President Ron Gettelfinger said in a statement.” Clearly, the union caved in on benefits to save jobs.

The pressure to come to an agreement with the big union now moves to GM (GM). Its only hope for staying out of Chapter 11 is to be able to demonstrate that it has a program that cuts enough costs to get by on a relatively modest amount of money from the federal government, a sum in the range of its projections from December. If the price tag for keeping the largest car company in the country independent is going to run up to $40 billion or more, the Administration is better off with GM in Chapter 11.

Douglas A. McIntrye