UAW will create $354.5 million VEBA for staff retirees to settle suit

2098 Views 11 Replies 10 Participants Last post by johnny smallblock, Feb 9, 2015

nadepalma

Discussion Starter · Feb 6, 2015

UAW will create $354.5 million VEBA for staff retirees to settle suit
David Barkholz
Automotive News
February 6, 2015

DETROIT -- The UAW has agreed to pay $354.5 million to create an independent retiree health care trust for its staff that will be similar to those established for retired auto workers at the Detroit 3.

The formation of the Voluntary Employee Benefits Association is part of a proposed settlement of a federal lawsuit filed in December by retired union staff members who opposed 2013 changes to the UAW’s retiree health care program.

The UAW has agreed to contribute $346 million to create the VEBA and another $8.5 million to administer the benefits, according to the proposed settlement. The VEBA would have its own independent board of directors and remain separate from the UAW.

“The proposed settlement is similar to the retiree health care settlements the UAW reached previously with GM, Ford, and Chrysler with respect to UAW-represented employees and retirees from those companies,” UAW President Dennis Williams said in a statement.

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johnny smallblock

· #2 · Feb 6, 2015

To be clear, I am completely pro-union and I'm confident this thread is going to quickly devolve into "unions are the problem so everything they do must be bad." So I'd like to note at the outset that (a) this is UAW setting something up for its own employees and does not affect automakers and (b) this isn't a lot of money.

Since these appear to be one-time payments, the money will probably be invested and the interest earned will pay for the coverage of its employees. Assuming a reasonable 5% annual return, that's $17.5m a year. And assuming the same rate of return for the $8.5m set aside for administrating the benefits, we're looking at a staff being paid (in total) less than $425K a year.

Before anyone else responds, I'm sure we can all agree that it would be a bad thing for retirees to lose benefits. And so I'm sure there won't be posts rooting for the collapse of the fund or gleefully suggesting that Americans lose pay or benefits.

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egran27

· #3 · Feb 6, 2015 (Edited)

To be clear, I'm pretty much anti-union, but I completely agree that this action to ensure that benefits promised to the employees is available, is the right thing to do.

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mchicha

· #4 · Feb 6, 2015

I am anti corruption everywhere and Unions have become very corrupt these days.

Its kind of sad that a Union had to be forced by the courts to do right by its own employees.

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Neanderthal

· #5 · Feb 6, 2015

It's truly a pity that the psychopathic greed and corruption of big business bosees that triggered union formation long ago, has now generally become the typical M.O. of the thugs known as union bosses. Irony.

http://dailysignal.com/2012/11/27/union-corruption-2012-big-labors-federal-rap-sheet/

http://www.dol.gov/ebsa/newsroom/criminal/main.html

It doesn't take much of a search to turn up chapter and verse of union bosses violating the trust of the membership and the laws of the land.

Not to excuse it, but corruption in the US--private and public--is on a roll and in the not-distant future, we'll more resemble Russia than the America we know and love.

Whistleblowers are prosecuted, fired, censored, and shunned.

mchicha said:
I am anti corruption everywhere and Unions have become very corrupt these days.

Its kind of sad that a Union had to be forced by the courts to do right by its own employees.

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Z Fury

· #6 · Feb 6, 2015

Neanderthal said:
Whistleblowers are prosecuted, fired, censored, and shunned.

Which is exactly why I left my last job without whistleblowing. I'm too young to go without a paycheck for the rest of my days.

Even my instructors in my Ethics CPE courses say the same thing. Think long and hard before whistleblowing, because it has ruined the life (personal and professional) of everyone who has done it thus far. Very sad.

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richmond2000

· #7 · Feb 8, 2015

Neanderthal said:
It's truly a pity that the psychopathic greed and corruption of big business bosees that triggered union formation long ago, has now generally become the typical M.O. of the thugs known as union bosses. Irony.

http://dailysignal.com/2012/11/27/union-corruption-2012-big-labors-federal-rap-sheet/

http://www.dol.gov/ebsa/newsroom/criminal/main.html

It doesn't take much of a search to turn up chapter and verse of union bosses violating the trust of the membership and the laws of the land.

Not to excuse it, but corruption in the US--private and public--is on a roll and in the not-distant future, we'll more resemble Russia than the America we know and love.

Whistleblowers are prosecuted, fired, censored, and shunned.

"power corrupts"

at least the retirees pension is "out of reach" hopefully and WILL get used for retiree's NOT some thing else

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Smaart Aas Saabr

· #8 · Feb 8, 2015

Neanderthal said:
It's truly a pity that the psychopathic greed and corruption of big business bosees that triggered union formation long ago, has now generally become the typical M.O. of the thugs known as union bosses. Irony.

http://dailysignal.com/2012/11/27/union-corruption-2012-big-labors-federal-rap-sheet/

http://www.dol.gov/ebsa/newsroom/criminal/main.html

It doesn't take much of a search to turn up chapter and verse of union bosses violating the trust of the membership and the laws of the land.

Not to excuse it, but corruption in the US--private and public--is on a roll and in the not-distant future, we'll more resemble Russia than the America we know and love.

Whistleblowers are prosecuted, fired, censored, and shunned.

How can it be getting worse? Remember Jimmy Hoffa?

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BlackGTP

· #9 · Feb 8, 2015

Neanderthal said:
It's truly a pity that the psychopathic greed and corruption of big business bosees that triggered union formation long ago, has now generally become the typical M.O. of the thugs known as union bosses. Irony.

http://dailysignal.com/2012/11/27/union-corruption-2012-big-labors-federal-rap-sheet/

http://www.dol.gov/ebsa/newsroom/criminal/main.html

It doesn't take much of a search to turn up chapter and verse of union bosses violating the trust of the membership and the laws of the land.

Not to excuse it, but corruption in the US--private and public--is on a roll and in the not-distant future, we'll more resemble Russia than the America we know and love.

Whistleblowers are prosecuted, fired, censored, and shunned.

I do agree that corruption is everywhere and unions seem to get more than their fare share. However, corruption is nothing new and there are examples going back as far as recorded history. The ancients were no better than we are today, the Roman Empire had quite a bit of corruption.... And we certainly have quite a bit going on in our government as well. What separates the USA from the Russia's of the world is that our society and government have built in checks and balances that tolerate corruption to a point and then take down the perpetrator. Our senators can take bribes, kickbacks, etc. to a point, but once they become to rich then the media will take notice, then of course the governing agencies will have to do something. This process isn't allowed in Russia, where the government owns/intimidates the media, therefor the Putin's of their world can take all they want.

Sadly, corruption is part of human nature.....

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Sox

· #10 · Feb 9, 2015

BlackGTP said:
I do agree that corruption is everywhere and unions seem to get more than their fare share. However, corruption is nothing new and there are examples going back as far as recorded history. The ancients were no better than we are today, the Roman Empire had quite a bit of corruption.... And we certainly have quite a bit going on in our government as well. What separates the USA from the Russia's of the world is that our society and government have built in checks and balances that tolerate corruption to a point and then take down the perpetrator. Our senators can take bribes, kickbacks, etc. to a point, but once they become to rich then the media will take notice, then of course the governing agencies will have to do something. This process isn't allowed in Russia, where the government owns/intimidates the media, therefor the Putin's of their world can take all they want.

Sadly, corruption is part of human nature.....

Spiro Agnew, Vice President of the United States of America, went to jail for accepting kickbacks (while still a politico in New Jersey I believe).

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Sox

· #11 · Feb 9, 2015

egran27 said:
To be clear, I'm pretty much anti-union, but I completely agree that this action to ensure that benefits promised to the employees is available, is the right thing to do.

Or you could just set up a "federal government national health program" like every other nation in the civilized world, so that every first world taxpayer and citizen receives what should be their birthright - good health. Instead your tax dollars go to pay for the constant, useless wars you have been fighting since 1964. Nice job in Iraq, by the way. Should be resolved by 2074.

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johnny smallblock

· #12 · Feb 9, 2015

egran27 said:
To be clear, I'm pretty much anti-union, but I completely agree that this action to ensure that benefits promised to the employees is available, is the right thing to do.

Look at us, disagreeing without being disagreeable. We should start a political movement.

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