UAW Convention: The ‘Good Times’ Roll Over Racist Poverty and Terror

DETROIT, MI, June 17 — If there is a crisis in the U.S. auto industry and within the United Auto Workers Union (UAW), you wouldn’t know it by looking at the 35th Constitutional Convention that just ended. The Hospitality Suites, Officers Receptions and Directors’ Dinners were in full swing as 1,200 delegates were wined and dined in a city where more than half the population, mostly black, former-UAW members and their families, live in poverty. We also were served a 10-course “meal” of politicians and government officials.

Since the last convention four years ago, UAW membership dropped another 35 percent to about 355,000 members, with the largest segment, 155,000, belonging to the Technical, Office, and Professional (TOP) division. The UAW helped GM, Ford and Chrysler impose a two-tier wage system that cut starting wages in half as well as cutting retiree health care.

After the UAW helped defeat their 2008 strike, the American Axel strikers had their wages slashed and then lost their jobs. As part of Obama’s bailout of the industry, the UAW agreed to a no-strike clause until 2015. Outgoing president Gettlefinger and incoming president Bob King (who tried and failed to force more concessions on Ford workers, while the company made a $2 billion profit) both referred to this as “saving the auto industry and the UAW,” to the cheers of the vast majority of delegates. 

If there was anything worse than the well-
orchestrated convention, it was the very loyal opposition of reformers and Trotskyites. The day before the convention opened they held a rally of less than 50 people. This in a city that is 90 percent black, facing poverty and police terror, and made up of tens of thousands of current, retired and former UAW members. On opening day they had less than 10 people picketing Cobo Hall. These “reformers” are current and retired UAW stewards, local officers and delegates, totally isolated from the workers.

In 2009, Solidarity House (UAW international headquarters) paid out almost $100 million in salaries to just over 550 vice-presidents, regional directors, international reps, organizers, attorneys, and more. This is only part of the union apparatus. This week, in the name of “sacrifice,” they gave up their Cost of Living Allowance while voting themselves a healthy raise to make up the difference. In contrast, new-hires at GM, Ford and Chrysler will earn a paltry $28,000 (if they work a full year).

The convention ended with a march from Cobo Hall to the Comerica Bank building, where the UAW, NAACP, Teamsters and state AFL-CIO all endorsed a mass march on Washington, October 2, for Jobs and Justice. What they really want is to rally the troops for the November elections.

It is clear that for the foreseeable future, PLP and other revolutionary-minded and anti-racist workers will have to function within the enemy’s camp, mixing patience and urgency in winning workers to our revolutionary communist outlook. The coming march on Washington is an opportunity to organize a growing number of workers to march and fight for communist revolution. Coming efforts to organize Toyota and the other trans-nationals can provide more openings for our Party. (We will have more to say in coming issues.)