2007 UAW Special Convention on
Collective Bargaining Day 01
by Local 2195 Webmaster John Davis
The 2007 UAW Special Convention on Collective
Bargaining opened at 10:00AM eastern time with the presentation of the
colors, the national anthem and opening prayer. UAW President Ron Gettelfinger
opened the conference and welcomed the delegates. All delegates were
seated and the proceedings began. 
Ohio Governor Ted Strickland addressed the conference. “I want
to thank the UAW for your support in last year’s elections,”
Governor Strickland. “Ohio faces the same issues that Michigan
and any other automotive state faces. I have the benefit of a working
class background so I understand these issues. My father was a member
of the Steelworkers and spent 46 years in the mill. Today, that mill
is closed and they are building a super Wal-Mart over the property.
This is the story of what has happened to so many working class families
in this country. It is time for the government to step up and make a
difference in the lives of our working class.
I have stood on picket lines and I believe in workers right to organize
and bargaining collectively. The time has also come for an affordable
single payer health care system that guarantees all citizens the right
to health care. Workers should have the right to a good paying job that
allows them to see to the needs of their family. The days of CEO’s
reaping the benefits and the workers taking the cuts have got to come
to an end.
America is at a crossroads and it is time to elect a government that
stands for working families, that stands for the right to organize and
stands for the future of our children.”
Next UAW President Ron Gettelfinger gave his opening address to the
conference.
“In this union teamwork in the leadership and solidarity in the
ranks is not just a slogan written on a banner hanging on the wall.
It is the foundation on which this union is based. This week we come
together to discuss the issues we face as a union and as working people.
These issues will form the platform for our negotiations this year.
We know that each workplace has different issues. Today we sit here
together auto assemblers, office workers, state employees, independent
parts suppliers and the broad segment of workers that makes up this
membership. However, with our differences we have common issues and
we stand shoulder to shoulder in solidarity on these issues. Regardless
of the differences we may have between us, it is our common goal of
advancing our membership, advancing working families and advancing the
American people. That is why the theme for this convention is “forging
our future.”
We will stand in defense of working Americans at the bargaining table,
on the shop floor and on the picket line if necessary. This union does
not want to strike, but when employers act as if collective bargaining
is a one way street we WILL do what we have to do.
We know all too well that it doesn’t matter what we win at the
bargaining table, when companies can close factories, outsource work
out of the country and hide behind the phony bankruptcies. We have to
work harder at organizing because we know our strength comes in numbers.
There are issues that we face that cant be resolved at the bargaining
table and that is why this union is a politically active union.”
(click here for the full text of his speech)
The delegates then began debating the resolutions submitted for approval
during the convention. The Resolutions Committee members took turns
reading the resolutions while each resolution was debated on the floor.
Issues that were discussed included:
-Bargaining in Bankruptcy
The recent rash of bankruptcy filings by companies intent on escaping
their obligations to their employees and their communities has resulted
in bankruptcy strategies being an important tool in bargaining. Areas
the UAW seek are seats on creditors committees, contesting motions to
cancel collective bargaining agreements, coordinating negotiations across
worksites and other unions, insisting on equality of sacrifice across
all stakeholders including top management and to ensure that workers
stand to benefit from a reorganized companies success.
- Contract Workers
- Limit the use of temporary and contingent workers.
- Union representation for all new hires.
- Negotiating clear and fair agreements that provide opportunities for
the advancement of all positions.
- Protecting the Right to Organize
- Securing good jobs for the future.
Later in the afternoon Professor Harley Shaiken of the University of
California at Berkley addressed the convention. Professor Shaiken is
the Director for the Center of South American Studies at Berkley and
has written a number of books on the impact our trade deals have with
other countries.
“I am proud to be with you here today,” Professor Shaiken
stated, “and I hope you understand the importance of your convention
here over the next several days. UAW contracts reach a much broader
segment of society than just your members.
In the Local Union Hall of Local 600 at Ford, there are a number of
photographs on the wall. These photographs tell the story of the River
Rough facility, including the battle of the overpass where Walter Reuther
and other organizers were beaten by passing out UAW literature to the
workers has they crossed the overpass from the parking lot to the plant.
One of the last photographs on the wall is that of an older unassuming
man in a cap crossing the bridge to work. This man was the first person
at Ford to draw a pension.
That bridge that carried this gentleman and countless other UAW members
to the plant was much more than a way across the street. This was a
bridge built by the UAW to carry the America’s workers to the
middle class. The UAW contracts won higher wages, benefits and pensions
for their members and all of the working class in general. Walter Reuther
once said that the “high velocity purchasing power put the steam
in the boiler that was the economy.” (click here for the entire
context of Professor Shaiken’s speech)
Following additional debate over resolutions, the convention was adjourned
at 5:00PM for the day.
