Remember the video we watched in class about Ford and the creation of the assembly line? Ford payed his employees extremely well, offered a plan for workers to invest in buying their own car from Ford for a discount, and even provided company picnics for the workers and their families on weekends. All these benefits are no more. This article details the new labor pact that Ford has made for saving money in our nation's current economic state. Although the pact will be "saving Ford millions of dollars in precious cash", it does this by cutting out the cost-of-living payments, performance bonuses and Christmas bonuses. So much for Ford having all kinds of great benefits for its workers. These payment cuts are a result of the global decline in car and truck sales since the summer of 2008. Last year Ford lost $14.6 billion, but has not filed bankruptcy or sought federal assistance as some of its competitors have. Chrysler and GM, the fellow car manufactures out of Detroit, are far closer to needing assistance. As of today, "it's unclear whether Obama's task force will recommend more loans to keep GM and Chrysler afloat, or propose Chapter 11 bankruptcy as the vehicle for fixing the companies." Whichever is option is chosen, the decision must be made soon to kept the companies afloat.
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