Back in the 80s the trucking industry was deregulated. What occurred was the collapse of poorly-managed trucking companies that had been supported by collective rate making. Management and union at the time were in synchronicity with each other. Rate increases were routinely approved by the Interstate Commerce Commission so union wage demands could be met. Teamsters unions were smart. If a national strike was called they didn't strike ALL the trucking companies, they would just choose one of them. Kind of like the UAW.
The safety net of collective rate making went out the door with deregulation. Those companies who had been riding along were forced to close their doors. Thousands of union truck drivers and support personnel were forced onto the streets. No bailout then. Fast forward to 2008.
President Bush has bailed out our automotive industry. We can't close them down, of course. However, I accuse management and labor to be in synchronicity with each, just like pre-regulation trucking in the 80s.
U.S. car makers had it all. When quality was introduced, and the American people began to buy foreign-made cars, the American auto industry woke up. They made giant strides in putting out better cars but they lost one invisible item - MOMENTUM. Kind of like a football team that fumbles the ball on opening drives and allows the opposition to get one or two up on them. It becomes pretty hard to regain any pretense at composure. Unless you have referees who give you the ball back.
President Bush has given the U.S. auto industry the ball back. My prediction is the UAW and American automobile executive management will continue to fumble. The question will then be, who's going to kick the referees out to make sure the rest of us witness an honest game?
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