Chrysler Strike Deadline Nears

At the end of this week, Chrysler and the United Auto Workers union will head to a federal mediator as they try to hammer out a new contract.

There is an urgency for Chrysler employees to come up with some sort of solution before the deadline, or else all guarantees will be lost.

Chrysler has been in dire straits financially, but if management can have a successful negotiation with workers then it could help turn things around. This is still not guaranteed though, since if no agreement is reached on March 31 then it could go bankrupt by June 1.

The automotive industry is extremely competitive. Many automakers have been forced out of business in recent years, including Hummer, Saturn and Pontiac. The UAW has also lost several contracts to foreign automakers as well in the last five years.

But with Chrysler now emerging from Chapter 11 bankruptcy, it's a good time to discuss what employees can expect if a contract is not reached this week. The worst case scenario is that Chrysler will close entirely and the average automobile worker will be out of a job, but most people are unaware of this.

That's why we're here today talking about who could benefit from Chrysler's bankruptcy and how involved their union has been in keeping Chrysler alive.

Some people believe the UAW has been negotiating with Chrysler to put themselves in a better position if it went bankrupt. The union has already negotiated contracts with General Motors and Ford, which is why they aren't bankrupt.

Obviously, there's no proof of this, but what it could mean is that companies like Ford and GM are obligated to pay higher wages to help compensate for workers who could be laid off if a contract is not reached this week.

There's also speculation that if Chrysler goes bankrupt the union would have bargaining rights over other automakers in order to prevent the same things from happening to them. This doesn't sound likely though, which is why we're here today talking about this issue that pertains directly to you.

So, how is your job affected?

Well, if Chrysler does go bankrupt, then you could be out of a job and have to find new employment. In the mean time there is a possibility that these negotiations may not produce a positive outcome for workers and the company will truly be facing bankruptcy. If this happens then stock prices will fall significantly over the next few months, which would likely result in more layoffs.

Since Chrysler does not have as much money to continue business operations, it's more likely that they'll lay off employees since they'll need to just focus all their energy on keeping the company alive so it can come back from bankruptcy when there's more money available. If a new contract is not achieved, then some people could be laid off and you could be one of those people.

Is the union involved?

The UAW has historically been involved in saving Chrysler from bankruptcy, which is why many believe there's an ulterior motive behind their negotiations. It's true that Chrysler has recently emerged from financial distress, but it was because the government came to their assistance and bailed out the company so they could survive.

If Chrysler does really go bankrupt this time then the UAW will likely lose bargaining rights over other automakers since they were trying so hard to save the company when it went into Chapter 11.

Some people believe the UAW will just sit on the sidelines and let Chrysler die since it would result in fewer labor contracts. However, this is unlikely since the union usually comes out against a company's bankruptcy, which would be ironic given that they have also been bailed out many times.

What could happen?

If Chrysler really does go bankrupt again then there's a possibility that it could be restructured and eventually re-emerge with new management. However, if this happens then it will likely take a while to get things back up and running since they'll have a lot of debt to pay off. It will also mean that wages could go down significantly as well as some people losing their jobs.

If things do end up working out then you would have no problems with your employment status and you could keep working for Chrysler. But if this doesn't happen and the company doesn't come back, then it will likely be closed down.

What can you do?

If you're an employee at Chrysler then you should try to contact the UAW to see if they can help negotiate a deal that would prevent bankruptcy. This is unlikely though, since they've already negotiated with Chrysler so they might not put much effort in trying to find more money to prevent layoffs. However, it's still good to contact them since there's a possibility that this could help your position with the company since it's a financially troubled situation.

If you're an employee at Chrysler that doesn't work directly with the union and all negotiations will be done by management, then you can still contact them to see if they can help.

You could also contact your local labor union to see if they are able to help with negotiations. This is not likely though since these negotiations will be conducted by the UAW, so it doesn't seem like the union would put much effort into these negotiations. There's also a possibility that this won't produce favorable results for employees either, and in that case you could be out of a job as well.

Conclusion

Overall, these negotiations are likely to have no impact on your job status since it's the UAW that's involved in the negotiations. It might be able to affect your company though since it bails out companies when they go bankrupt. If a contract is not reached by this week then employees at Chrysler could face layoffs and it may result in your job being outsourced to another branch of the company. But if things work out, then you could keep working for Chrysler without any problems at all. Still, it's good advice to contact the union and see what kind of help they could give you if this is really going to happen. You just want to get ahead of the game and know the information about this possible bankruptcy.

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Conclusion

Your job at Chrysler is currently very secure and you should be able to continue working for them without any problems. If these negotiations are going to end up resulting in layoffs then you'll likely not be paid very well and they likely wouldn't offer you benefits. But if the company comes out of bankruptcy, then everything will go back to normal. Still, it's a good idea to get ahead of this situation if possible since it could end up costing you your job.

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Source: www.thecarconnection.