blatantninja
Resident Redneck Facist
Ideally what they would do is force them into bankruptcy but have the government secure the bankruptcy financing (no one else will and without it, Chap 11 re-org becomes Chap 7 liquidation).
This would allow them:
1) the ability to negate the union contract, with court approval, and get current operating costs inline with competitors, as well as get out of these ridiculous paying of furloughed workers.
2) the ability to declare the pension plan insolvent and push it on the PBGC, thus reducing their massive cost of keeping the plan solvent. This obviously would suck for the pensioners and soon to be pensioners as they'd end up with a sharp cut in pension benefits, but it's either that or essentially have the tax payers indirectly pay their full pensions with bailouts now and again in the future. Congress would have to give more money to the PBGC (or it would have to raise premiums), but that would be cheaper than continued bailouts
3) The ability to shift operations out of Michigan/Ohio and into more labor friendly places.
4) Save the majority of the 2-3MM jobs that stand to be lost if they liquidate.
Of course this will never happen because no politician wants to piss off the unions or their members.
This would allow them:
1) the ability to negate the union contract, with court approval, and get current operating costs inline with competitors, as well as get out of these ridiculous paying of furloughed workers.
2) the ability to declare the pension plan insolvent and push it on the PBGC, thus reducing their massive cost of keeping the plan solvent. This obviously would suck for the pensioners and soon to be pensioners as they'd end up with a sharp cut in pension benefits, but it's either that or essentially have the tax payers indirectly pay their full pensions with bailouts now and again in the future. Congress would have to give more money to the PBGC (or it would have to raise premiums), but that would be cheaper than continued bailouts
3) The ability to shift operations out of Michigan/Ohio and into more labor friendly places.
4) Save the majority of the 2-3MM jobs that stand to be lost if they liquidate.
Of course this will never happen because no politician wants to piss off the unions or their members.