Tuesday, August 30, 2005
DDR
Monday, August 29, 2005
GM & Health Benefits
The boys and girls over at Autoblog are running a quick post about how the UAW (United Auto Workers) are getting a little worried about how the price of oil will be affecting their ability to maintain current contract levels with their employers (the big 3 automakers).
Something I've been thinking about for a while is this:
GM, Ford, and DC, are all having problems keeping pace with the foreign makers, notably the Japanese (and now Korean) makers. A big reason is the cost of labour in North America - mostly in health benefits. The UAW fought long and hard to earn those health benefits, (which even I, an ardent pro-union dude, will admit are beginning to look a tad bit frivolous) and I don't think they should give them up if they don't have to. Now, lately, they've been talking about how they may have to, and I hope they do whatever they need to do to help the Big 3 out on this, or we'll all be driving noisy tin-can four-bangers.
While it is true that some of the Asian makers are using American blood and sweat to get some of their assembly done, it is pretty widely known that the Asian makers generally spend less money on labour than the domestics do.
I think this is a shame, and here's what I propose.
I think that while this current round of UAW-Domestics negotiations is going on, this should be an issue that is discussed and addressed as a UNIFIED front, consisting of all the domestic makers and the UAW and all affiliated unions. They should agree on a lobbying programme including schedualing and message, and have it written into their new contracts. This new lobbying programme should focus on getting legislation passed that restricts ANY foreign maker from selling products in North America unless they meet certain labour standards for the production of ALL the products and ALL the parts of those products. They would need to come up with some metric for this, of course, like 'health benefits paid per employee' or something like that. But they should be forcing the foreign makers to take care of their employees at home, and abroad. The American (we as Canadians are included in this group) consumer sure as hell hasn't seemed to give a rat's ass where their cars come from, or who built them, or how those people live.
This would do a few things:
Something I've been thinking about for a while is this:
GM, Ford, and DC, are all having problems keeping pace with the foreign makers, notably the Japanese (and now Korean) makers. A big reason is the cost of labour in North America - mostly in health benefits. The UAW fought long and hard to earn those health benefits, (which even I, an ardent pro-union dude, will admit are beginning to look a tad bit frivolous) and I don't think they should give them up if they don't have to. Now, lately, they've been talking about how they may have to, and I hope they do whatever they need to do to help the Big 3 out on this, or we'll all be driving noisy tin-can four-bangers.
While it is true that some of the Asian makers are using American blood and sweat to get some of their assembly done, it is pretty widely known that the Asian makers generally spend less money on labour than the domestics do.
I think this is a shame, and here's what I propose.
I think that while this current round of UAW-Domestics negotiations is going on, this should be an issue that is discussed and addressed as a UNIFIED front, consisting of all the domestic makers and the UAW and all affiliated unions. They should agree on a lobbying programme including schedualing and message, and have it written into their new contracts. This new lobbying programme should focus on getting legislation passed that restricts ANY foreign maker from selling products in North America unless they meet certain labour standards for the production of ALL the products and ALL the parts of those products. They would need to come up with some metric for this, of course, like 'health benefits paid per employee' or something like that. But they should be forcing the foreign makers to take care of their employees at home, and abroad. The American (we as Canadians are included in this group) consumer sure as hell hasn't seemed to give a rat's ass where their cars come from, or who built them, or how those people live.
This would do a few things:
- It would immediately and directly affect the lives of the people working in Honda, Toyota, Hyundai, Kia, Daewoo, Isuzu, Mitsubishi and Nissan plant, all over the world - for the better.
- It would level the playing field. No wonder the Asian makers are making money and being able to do research and still beat American makers on price and quality. According to that article I linked to up there, GM spent $5.6 billion on 1 million employees (retirees and family included) last year, and LOST $1.1 billion! I highly doubt ANY of the Asian makers pays out in a manner even CLOSE to this. If they were force to take care of their employees they would have similar operating expenses to the Big 3 domestics, and they could more evenly compete.
- It would get rid of some of the ridiculous pricing that's going on right now. Who the hell knows what's going on with prices anyway? Is this a good car? Is this? Is this a good price for that car? Or this one? Who the hell knows!!??!
- It would even out CASH FLOW issues. When point #2 started to take effect, the Asian makers would look more similar to the American makers on paper, and thus be LESS ATTRACTIVE TO FOREIGN INVESTMENT, which is a big reason for the Asian makers success, as far as I'm concerned. They've got this cash CYCLE going on, that's forced the domestics into a slump (invest in Toyota, they use your money to make money, you invest more in Toyota, they make more money, you invest more in Toyota, they make more money - meanwhile the big 3 are left out - they aren't making money because no one's investing in them, because they're not making money... etc)
Friday, August 26, 2005
XK
Revolution
Dig my rendition of my prediction of what the Revolution's controller will look like, courtesy of your friendly neighbourhood fake editor.
Thursday, August 25, 2005
Stones....
For those of you who haven't heard yet, there is a gigantic Rolling Stones concert happening here in town on the 3rd of Sept.
Recently the promoters announced some new "on stage" tickets. At first I didn't know how this would work effectively, but an article I found on Cool Hunting may reveal some of the mystery.
It looks like there's some kind of on-stage hotel.
Friday, August 19, 2005
Tomato. Tomaato. Picasa. Picaso.
Today, kids, I want to tell you about Picasa.
I don't think I've blogged about this before.
It's photo software for Windows. It's FREE (as in beer). It's also very very good. It's owned and distributed by Google (so I trust it - no spyware, no privacy concerns). It installs and UN-installs very easily and cleanly.
Anyone out there who's into digital photos (ahem, Lindsay) should really think about checking this software out. No more browsing file systems for pictures, no more ridiculous file names trying to convey all the information about the picture in 30 characters, no more ten-different-photo-viewer-programs, no more lost pictures, no more red-eye, etc, etc, etc.
For those who know what iPhoto is, it's a lot like that. Some people like it BETTER!
I don't think I've blogged about this before.
It's photo software for Windows. It's FREE (as in beer). It's also very very good. It's owned and distributed by Google (so I trust it - no spyware, no privacy concerns). It installs and UN-installs very easily and cleanly.
Anyone out there who's into digital photos (ahem, Lindsay) should really think about checking this software out. No more browsing file systems for pictures, no more ridiculous file names trying to convey all the information about the picture in 30 characters, no more ten-different-photo-viewer-programs, no more lost pictures, no more red-eye, etc, etc, etc.
For those who know what iPhoto is, it's a lot like that. Some people like it BETTER!
Thursday, August 18, 2005
HBTL
Help From The Knowledgebase
Apple has just posted a great little article in their knowledgebase detailing the difference between a 'disc' and a 'disk' - for those of you who don't already have a firm grip on the concept and still happen to care.
Wednesday, August 17, 2005
Geek Out - Perpendicular Style
Apparently there have been great strides in perpendicular recording hard disk drives as of late. What is perpendicular recording, you ask? Have a look at this sweet disco flash demo.
Tuesday, August 16, 2005
Craziest Thing Ever
Monday, August 15, 2005
On The CBC....
News reports this morning say that the CBC has locked its union out, after last minute negotiations failed to produce anything over the weekend.
So, what does JD think of all this? (That's why you came here isn't it?) First let's outline what's going on:
Well, for starters the union members voted 87.something percent in favour of giving the union negotiators a strike mandate, so the union was ready to strike if it was decided that it was needed. After 15 months without a contract, something definitely was needed.
Also, while the CBC wants to have the ability to make new hires in terms of contracts and 'temporary full-time' and 'full-time casual' -type hires, the union claims that ~30% of it existing staff is under such employment terms and provides the corporation with all the staffing flexibility it should need.
It should also be noted that while many services will be scaled back, the CBC will still be running all of it's various services, but will be scaling them back, or providing 'acquired content' ('Pimp-My-Ride-on-MUCH'-style) to fill time on it's various television and radio channels.
So there's a couple issues I want to talk about here:
We're essentially asking them to put their life on hold when we do this. They can't make sound financial decisions while they're working without a contract, because they know that the wages they're making are calculated using a formula set out when the (now expired) previous contract was drafted, (so probably more than a few years ago) and inevitably the world has not turned out exactly as the contract negotiators predicted, so adjustments need to be made, usually in the form of wage increases for the employees.
The previous contract has language about how to do schedules and how to disperse overtime and how to discipline employees, and how to 'grieve' issues with management.... all that stuff also needs to be updated to reflect what has happened since the original contract was written.
We need our governments and (as in this case) our corporations to understand that simply allowing every contract to expire before you start to negotiate seriously is simply not acceptable. Every time I turn around I hear about another union that had to work for some lengthy period of time, sometimes measured in YEARS, without the updates to their contract that they desperately need. Aliant, the nurses, the highway workers, and now the CBC.
The clauses that say "... this contract will remain in effect until such a time as when a new contract is deemed worthy to replace it ... " or whatever, are very useful and should be in there, but I think there should be control over it as well, so it should say something like ".... if a new contract is not reached within 8 months of the expiration of this contract, the issue will automatically go to arbitration ... " or something like that. I don't think it's unreasonable to ask most unions to stand by their leaders for 8 months or so and hope that the negotiations get somewhere, and I don't think it's unreasonable to ask our governments and corporations to get down to work and get something hammered out in 8 months. Maybe it's off by a bit (would 6 months be better? 12?) but I think something like this needs to be introduced so that we can help avoid these strike situations EVERY TIME. I LOVE that unions have the ability to strike and defend themselves, but they shouldn't be asked to resort to such drastic action so often. Nor should employers (gov, corps) in the case of lockouts.
Coming from a rather ruralized part of the country, I know the effect that these 'modern' employment terms have on people.
They end up working 60+ hours a week, burning themselves out trying to earn a living, because they don't get the benefits that real 'full-time' employees do, so they have to pay for more stuff. They have to earn twice as much money to have the same standard of living.
A lot of the time, they have to call their employer in the morning to see if they're supposed to work that day, and they do that every day. That's no way to live.
They put these people 'on-call' though it really shouldn't be called that, and I don't know how they get away with it or why people agree to do it because they don't get paid for it at all.
Overall the uncertainty of their lives drives them insane, and they inevitably run into financial trouble.
I understand why the union (The Canadian Media Guild - CMG) doesn't want to get involved with this type of employment.
Another thing to consider here, though, is that the CBC is not under and great pressure to get this thing solved right now. There is a glut of available television and radio programming that they can purchase from other networks to keep their airwaves full. It will be crap, and no one will enjoy it as much as they enjoyed the Real McCoy, but it will get them by. They will broadcast sports without commentary and they will probably put most of our news up on the screen as text, but they can get by for a very long time without the union. The union has no such luxury - their members are all on strike pay, and uncertain about their jobs and their future. This is another place where I think a mandatory arbitration clause WITH A MANDATORY TIMEFRAME would help solve some of the problem. Also I think it's worth considering changes to the regulations that companies (governments and corps) have to follow concerning what they can do to keep their business running smoothly during a work stoppage. Can they hire contract workers? How many? (In terms of a percentage of original workforce) At what cost? Are they allowed to hire employees from outside the province? Outside the country? What are their obligations to those 'replacement' employees when the work stoppage is over? and on and on and on...
That's probably fine for now. I have lots to talk about, but I've made my main points I think.
Let me know what you think folks. I know it's summer vacation for most of you 'university folk' but throw me a little sump'in sump'in.
So, what does JD think of all this? (That's why you came here isn't it?) First let's outline what's going on:
Well, for starters the union members voted 87.something percent in favour of giving the union negotiators a strike mandate, so the union was ready to strike if it was decided that it was needed. After 15 months without a contract, something definitely was needed.
Also, while the CBC wants to have the ability to make new hires in terms of contracts and 'temporary full-time' and 'full-time casual' -type hires, the union claims that ~30% of it existing staff is under such employment terms and provides the corporation with all the staffing flexibility it should need.
It should also be noted that while many services will be scaled back, the CBC will still be running all of it's various services, but will be scaling them back, or providing 'acquired content' ('Pimp-My-Ride-on-MUCH'-style) to fill time on it's various television and radio channels.
So there's a couple issues I want to talk about here:
- Unions being asked to worked with expired contracts
- These 'modern' employment terms
- The employer's ability to 'contract' and make do while the strike is happening
We're essentially asking them to put their life on hold when we do this. They can't make sound financial decisions while they're working without a contract, because they know that the wages they're making are calculated using a formula set out when the (now expired) previous contract was drafted, (so probably more than a few years ago) and inevitably the world has not turned out exactly as the contract negotiators predicted, so adjustments need to be made, usually in the form of wage increases for the employees.
The previous contract has language about how to do schedules and how to disperse overtime and how to discipline employees, and how to 'grieve' issues with management.... all that stuff also needs to be updated to reflect what has happened since the original contract was written.
We need our governments and (as in this case) our corporations to understand that simply allowing every contract to expire before you start to negotiate seriously is simply not acceptable. Every time I turn around I hear about another union that had to work for some lengthy period of time, sometimes measured in YEARS, without the updates to their contract that they desperately need. Aliant, the nurses, the highway workers, and now the CBC.
The clauses that say "... this contract will remain in effect until such a time as when a new contract is deemed worthy to replace it ... " or whatever, are very useful and should be in there, but I think there should be control over it as well, so it should say something like ".... if a new contract is not reached within 8 months of the expiration of this contract, the issue will automatically go to arbitration ... " or something like that. I don't think it's unreasonable to ask most unions to stand by their leaders for 8 months or so and hope that the negotiations get somewhere, and I don't think it's unreasonable to ask our governments and corporations to get down to work and get something hammered out in 8 months. Maybe it's off by a bit (would 6 months be better? 12?) but I think something like this needs to be introduced so that we can help avoid these strike situations EVERY TIME. I LOVE that unions have the ability to strike and defend themselves, but they shouldn't be asked to resort to such drastic action so often. Nor should employers (gov, corps) in the case of lockouts.
Coming from a rather ruralized part of the country, I know the effect that these 'modern' employment terms have on people.
They end up working 60+ hours a week, burning themselves out trying to earn a living, because they don't get the benefits that real 'full-time' employees do, so they have to pay for more stuff. They have to earn twice as much money to have the same standard of living.
A lot of the time, they have to call their employer in the morning to see if they're supposed to work that day, and they do that every day. That's no way to live.
They put these people 'on-call' though it really shouldn't be called that, and I don't know how they get away with it or why people agree to do it because they don't get paid for it at all.
Overall the uncertainty of their lives drives them insane, and they inevitably run into financial trouble.
I understand why the union (The Canadian Media Guild - CMG) doesn't want to get involved with this type of employment.
Another thing to consider here, though, is that the CBC is not under and great pressure to get this thing solved right now. There is a glut of available television and radio programming that they can purchase from other networks to keep their airwaves full. It will be crap, and no one will enjoy it as much as they enjoyed the Real McCoy, but it will get them by. They will broadcast sports without commentary and they will probably put most of our news up on the screen as text, but they can get by for a very long time without the union. The union has no such luxury - their members are all on strike pay, and uncertain about their jobs and their future. This is another place where I think a mandatory arbitration clause WITH A MANDATORY TIMEFRAME would help solve some of the problem. Also I think it's worth considering changes to the regulations that companies (governments and corps) have to follow concerning what they can do to keep their business running smoothly during a work stoppage. Can they hire contract workers? How many? (In terms of a percentage of original workforce) At what cost? Are they allowed to hire employees from outside the province? Outside the country? What are their obligations to those 'replacement' employees when the work stoppage is over? and on and on and on...
That's probably fine for now. I have lots to talk about, but I've made my main points I think.
Let me know what you think folks. I know it's summer vacation for most of you 'university folk' but throw me a little sump'in sump'in.
Wednesday, August 10, 2005
There and Back
I just wanted to let everyone know I'm back safe and sound.
For those of you who didn't know I went away, well... I was.
My journey took me from home (my Moncton home) to Brockville, ON for a bit of a family reunion, then on to Montreal for a stint with the Han-man et al, before returning home again. To Moncton.
I had a great vacation and perhaps I will get some blogging happening again.
For those of you who didn't know I went away, well... I was.
My journey took me from home (my Moncton home) to Brockville, ON for a bit of a family reunion, then on to Montreal for a stint with the Han-man et al, before returning home again. To Moncton.
I had a great vacation and perhaps I will get some blogging happening again.
