By: Robert S. Siegel
Imagine that you work for Toyota, Honda, or any of the other so called foreign automobile manufacturers, like 400,000 other Americans. You’re a mechanic or a factory worker, a sales rep or a dealer.
You worked hard to get your job with that company and you’ve worked very hard to keep your job. You take extra training, get to work early, and do your best for the company. Perhaps you even turned down a competitive offer because you knew your company made superior products and provided the best customer support. Your dedication meant a brighter future for your family.
Until now.
Because some of your competitors are known as “American” car manufacturers the government decided to support those manufacturers when their decisions nearly bankrupt their companies. That government support included billions of dollars in cash plus incentives to consumers to buy American cars. Suddenly, the legacy American car companies could sell their cars for thousands of dollars less then just a few months ago, without having to make any improvements in their processes to cut those costs. The reduced prices will increase sales of “American” cars at the expense of the other manufacturers.
Your company will sell fewer cars so the company will need fewer people. Your job might be at risk from plant closings, downsizing, forced vacations, and less voluntary overtime.
Where did the government get the money to give to those so called American car manufacturers? Look at your paystub. They took it from you in the form of taxes.
Everything has a cost. Government can only give to one group by taking resources from someone else; in this case the government took the money from you.
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And what would happen to the hundreds of thousands of employees who would be out of work if we lose our domestic car manufacturers and their suppliers. The foreign car companies manufacturing cars in the US have a very significant cost advantage. Other than Honda in Ohio they have built their plants in non-union states which gives them significant cost savings. In addition they do not have the legacy costs of health and welfare and pensions that the American companies do. In their countries these costs are part of the social welfare net covered by their governments.
As a country we have basically lost our manufacturing base. As a simple matter of national security we can not afford to lose any more.