Gettelfinger: Without a deal, an automaker's demise imminent

UAW President Ron Gettelfinger said today that the Bush administration and Congress must reach a compromise on some kind of federal assistance package for the nation’s domestic automakers in order to prevent a collapse of the auto industry and deeper recession.

“The purpose of us gathering her today is to say that it is critically important that the Bush administration Congress reach some agreement,” and provide some assistance to the automotive industry, Gettelfinger said during a news conference in Detroit.

“While there have been disagreements about the precise mechanism about providing assistance to the auto industry, surely it should be possible to figure out how to proceed,” he said.

Gettelfinger’s comments come less than 24 hours after he appeared in Washington D.C. alongside each of the domestic automakers’ CEO’s in what turned out to be a nearly fruitless effort to ask for a $25 billion bridge loan.

During two days of hearings in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives Gettelfigner and the UAW endured withering criticism for its wage structure with the domestic automakers. On Thursday, Gettelfinger fired back.

“We’ve been transforming for a long time” Gettelfinger said. “It is not our fault that the economy is in the tank.”

Without immediate action, Gettelfinger said, “We could see a collapse of one or more of the domestic auto companies by the end of this year.”

While the Senate has canceled a vote originally scheduled for today on an assistance package Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid today raised the prospect of calling the Senate back into session in December.

Gettelfinger on Thursday urged action, even if it is a scaled down package that could be put in place, “Until the Obama administration can put in place a long term plan to move the industry forward.”

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