Why can't GM & Ford compet with Toyota, even though Toyota makes most of its cars that it sells in the US in the US?
You asked many questions in the paragraph the quote above is from.
I believe that unions are the party that is the least responsible for Detroit failures.
I understand that most people believe that the wages, benefits and work rules of the union workers at the big three are the reason profits are no where to be found.
While it is obviously true that labor costs will affect any employer, it is my opinion that this is not the reason why the US automotive industry is such a bad shape.
Toyotas and Fords are comparably priced and in many cases Toyota has models that are quite a lot more expensive than Ford and Toyota parts a quite more expensive than domestic parts.
The consumer seems to prefer the Toyota models.
I believe that to be a quality and reliability issue.
Why else would the consumer pay a premium for a product and its parts?
Fords and Toyotas cars and parts are made in the US and other countries.
I do not know if they are both unionized and I do not know either company’s compensation package to its blue collar workers.
It simply does not matter from a sales perspective. Remember that we pay more for a car and parts, for a Camry than we do for a Taurus.
Big Three sales are down because the consumer believes their product to be inferior and is prepared to pay a premium to others.
I would strongly argue that both workforces are similar in ability. Yet one builds better cars.
Are you suggesting that Ford workers do not torque bolts as well as Toyota workers? I sure hope not.
The blue collar worker at US manufacturers is just building the product that management decided to build.
This is strictly a management decision.
US manufacturers chose to build an inferior product. They engineered a product that is inferior.
The 30000 soon to be unemployed workers in the automotive industry and their union brothers are the least responsible for their employer’s losses.
Unless management decides to build a better car, sales will not improve. It does not matter if you build it in Mexico or the US. Union build or not.
People will not buy the cars US management is currently building even at lower prices.
It is not the blue collar worker that is underperforming here people.