|
WASHINGTON, DC -- Employees and retirees of General Motors and Delphi will have an extra two weeks to submit e-testimony to a national e-hearing on the crisis in the U.S. auto industry launched earlier this month by Democrats in the House of Representatives.
The lawmakers opened the e-hearing on December 6 to give GM and Delphi workers an opportunity to communicate directly with Congress about their concerns on issues like jobs, wages, health insurance, and retirement security. Already, approximately 1,000 workers and retirees from at least 26 states have submitted e-testimony, with dozens more participating in the e-hearing every day. As a result of this massive response, Representative George Miller (D-CA), who is hosting the e-hearing along with 16 other lawmakers, has extended the deadline for testimony from December 15 to December 31, 2005. [Instructions on participating in the e-hearing are below.]
“The stories we are hearing from hundreds of workers all over the country are heartbreaking and incredibly important,” says Miller. “We want to make sure that every single GM or Delphi employee who wants to participate in the e-hearing has the opportunity to do so. Congress needs to hear from these workers.”
Miller’s office is posting participants’ statements on the e-hearing website as they are submitted. Here are excerpts from the some of the statements received since December 6:
- “I have been employed by Delphi for just over 33 years. I am 52 years old. Being that I am 52 years old, I feel that I am at a severe disadvantage when it comes to ‘starting over.’ I do have a degree in Human Resource Management, but, in all honestly, what good will it do me? How successful do you think it will be for a 52 year old woman to seek employment, especially in an area that has no work opportunities available . . . At least allow me to retire with dignity and give me my rightfully earned income that I deserve. I feel that I have been loyal to this company and that they have continually taken things away rather than rewarding me for my efforts. Bottom line, I feel that I have paid into my retirement fund during my years of service here at Delphi. It is supposed to be vested, not used as their checkbook.” [Lynda Bachman, Girard, OH]
- “Ladies and Gentlemen, my name is John and I’ve worked with GM/Delphi for 29 years. I once had long hair and was as the song says was ‘like a rock’. But today, I’m no longer that young man that came to work everyday, working towards a 30 year commitment, in return for a retirement. Today, I'm 57, but feel 87 . . . Long story short . . . I’m too old and broken down for most companies to take a chance on me . . . Without your help, I will lose about everything and there’s not enough time or youth left in me, to start over again.” [John Warren, Fitzgerald, Georgia]
- “I work for the truck assembly plant in Arlington, Texas. My job means everything to me. I am fifty-five (55) yrs. old. My concerns at this point in my life are wages, benefits and retirement. I was 29 when I started at General Motors and poor as a church mouse . . . . We were told there was a separate fund and that there were no concerns about us getting our pension. Now through no fault of our own we might not get what we were promised. If I was younger I wouldn't like it, but I could adjust if I had to, but to wait this late in my life to make these changes is just unforgivable. My husband retired two years ago and he also worked for General Motors, my job, wages, benefits and retirement are my life, please don't take that away from me, not now this late in my life.” [Mary Lloyd, Watauga, Texas]
State and local elected officials, economists, and union leaders have also submitted e-testimony, as has Rick Wagoner, GM’s CEO. Here are excerpts:
- “The combination of Delphi’s decision to file for bankruptcy and General Motors’ announcement of plant closings and layoffs has far-reaching implications for Michigan and many other states who proudly house our nation’s auto manufacturers. Delphi alone counts 15,000 Michigan employees in its base and GM’s recent announcement means that thousands of additional jobs – direct and indirect – are at risk. All told, our workers, retirees, hundreds of auto suppliers, and the automakers themselves could lose billions of dollars in wages, benefits, and profits in the next few years.” [Jennifer Granholm, Governor of Michigan].
- “All the available economic data suggest that these workers will face daunting economic challenges, most will see their standard of living drop substantially, and, in some cases, those declines will effectively be permanent.” [John Schmitt, economist, Center for Economic and Policy Research].
The Democratic lawmakers sponsoring this e-hearing will write and distribute a report based on the e-testimony they receive, and they will enter the e-testimony into the official Congressional Record.
The e-hearing website is http://edworkforce.house.gov/democrats/labor_autocrisis.shtml.
Visit the December 6 press release announcing the launch of the e-hearing.
HOW TO PARTICIPATE IN THE E-HEARING
Employees or retirees of Delphi Corp. or General Motors may send testimony of 500 words or less to autocrisis@mail.house.gov. Testimony may be posted online. Participants must include their name, address, phone number, and email address for verification purposes; but only their name and hometown will be posted along with their testimony. Participants should discuss how the announced changes at GM and Delphi could affect their lives.
### |
|
