Is the unionized American auto industry dead?
There are some who claim Detroit automakers are stuck in old ways of doing business and unable to compete with their more flexible Asian and European competitors. Its true that todays auto companies and autoworkers face more challenges than ever. But much of what is said about the auto industry doesnt square with the reality of whats being done inside todays auto factories. For one thing, several popular vehicles that carry foreign nameplates are actually built here in the U.S. by UAW members, working with the same union contracts that supposedly make auto plants uncompetitive. Our members now build vehicles not only for Detroit-based automakers, but also for Isuzu, Mazda, Mitsubishi, Toyota and Volvo Trucks. Some other common misconceptions: Nobody builds auto plants in Michigan anymore. All the new factories are down South. That would be news to GM, which just spent $1.5 billion on assembly operations in Lansing; to Ford, which spent $2 billion to rebuild the Rouge complex in Dearbor
