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Vaughn Goodwin

As production winds down at the Alabama Site, there are a lot of things working in the background to prepare for the future of the local union and our members. The decision was made to offer 300 a transfer to GM’s Spring Hill assembly operations. At this writing a large number have already moved with more waiting their flowback.

The recent announcement that GM was idling the Spring Hill facility has created addition stress for those who have moved and are waiting to flow there. Changes to the agreement have impacted the way that SUB benefits are paid and this could play in role in what happens over the next few months. GM’s bankruptcy filing has complicated a situation that was already difficult enough. It seems each day a new set of issues crop up and all we can do is work through each one and hope for the best.

One area that received a lot of attention in the actions leading up to the filing was changes to retiree health care. Everyone is aware in January the VEBA will be assuming responsibility for retiree health care. The VEBA is a trust fund that will cover the expense of retiree health care, enabling GM to move that cost off their books. The funding for the trust was to come from cash contributions by GM over a period of time.

Part of GM’s debt was the money owed to the trust, with a major sticking point in the amendment to the contract being in how GM would cover the additional contributions to the trust. When GM exits bankruptcy,  the “good assets” will be placed in a new company and the “bad assets”  sold off. To cover the remaining contributions to the trust, GM will swap stock in the new company in place of the owed contributions. Many of the pundits have been going on about the UAW owning part of the new GM,  when actually it will be the VEBA that owns the stock, not the UAW.

At the Region 8 leadership meeting UAW Vice-President Cal Rapson gave a report on GM and stated that he felt confident that GM would emerge from bankruptcy a profitable company. This will make the stock the VEBA is being issued more valuable and hopefully boost the trust funds ability to fund retiree health care. He also stated that vision and dental plans are being suspended not terminated. Vice-President Rapson feels these benefits could be reinstated if GM prospers in the future.

Additionally he added the International Union was looking into group plans that could be offered to retirees at a reasonable cost to insure dental and vision coverage is available until the time in which those plans could be reinstated.

Effective June 26, 2009 there will no longer be any benefit representatives at the Alabama Site. All retirees will use Skipper Rush for benefit issues. Region 8 Director Gary Casteel gave Region 8 International Representative Skipper Rush the assignment of benefit rep for GM retirees last winter. Skipper is based out of the Atlanta Office and can be reached at 1-866-854-9756.

At this time there are no plans to close the union hall in the immediate future. That decision will rest with the International Union. At some point in time the Retiree Chapter will assume the leadership role in the local, with the future of the union hall being subject to economic conditions at that time. However for the moment, the union hall will be open and available for retiree meetings and functions.

Currently we are working on plans for a picnic to be held at the Union Hall on August 22, 2009. This will give everyone a chance to get together one last time. As the site has been wound down over the last couple years, there have been many painful decisions made concerning expenditures. Discontinuing our annual picnic wasn’t easy but it had to be done. This picnic will be held at the hall to lower the cost.

Another painful decision has been with our local paper. This will be the last issue of Steering South due to cost. We plan on continuing the local website because it is much cheaper to operate. Plans are to keep our retirees informed using the website and email list going forward. Again, it simply comes down to economics.

In closing, I would like to express what an honor and privilege it has been for me to have served this membership as President. I truly wished things could have turned out differently, but we were a casualty of the economic storm that swept through this country. Our membership did everything that was asked to save this business, but at the end it came down to capacity. The dramatic drop in auto sales left most companies with more capacity than the market required.

Working for this membership has been a great honor and I feel a special bond with each of you. Regardless of what the future holds for each us, the things we did here together will always bind us together in a special way and I am truly grateful for the opportunity to serve you.  Each of you will remain in mine and Dena’s prayers and thoughts.

In Solidarity,
Vaughn Goodwin
Local 2195 President