Saturday, May 20, 2000
What's the Buzz?
Job security top GE contract issue
By Mike Boyer
The Cincinnati Enquirer
The top issue in upcoming contract talks between General Electric Co. and a coalition of 14 unions, including those at GE Aircraft Engines in Evendale, isn't wages — it's job security, according to a union survey of members.
Wages ranked behind factors such as job and income security, pensions and health care.
“What good is it to get $20 an hour if you don't have a job?” said Wayne Reynolds, president of United Auto Workers Local 647. His group will serve as host of a rally this morning by the Coordinated Bargaining Committee, the coalition representing 37,000 GE workers.
Contract talks between the CBC and GE begin May 30 in New York.
The CBC has hit hard at what it says is GE's practice of cutting jobs by exporting work to lower-wage countries. GE says the charges oversimplify a complex global business.
“We're a global company; over half our sales are overseas,” GEAE spokesman Rick Kennedy says.
He said GEAE hasn't exported engine assembly work, although some suppliers send their work abroad to meet cost targets.
Today's rally is expected to draw several hundred union members to the Local 647 union hall, 10020 Reading Road, Evendale. Featured speakers include CBC Chairman Ed Fire, president of the International Union of Electronic Workers, and Tom Buffenbarger, international machinists union president and former GEAE employee.
GE's contracts with the unions expire starting at the end of June.
Have a tip about a Tristate company that should be included in our daily Buzz? Give business editor Richard Green a call at 768-8477 or e-mail him at rgreen@enquirer.com.
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