How Much Do Autoworkers Actually Make?
Darin Gilley ,UAW Local 2250
It’s that time again. That time when contracts are negotiated. That time when automakers slip highly deceptive and inflated figures of autoworker pay into the public discussion. Remember 2009 and the bridge loans? While auto executives were jumping out of the business with golden parachutes, they told everyone that would listen that autoworkers were paid $75 an hour. By the time this figure was debunked, some folks believed autoworkers were making $156,000 a year.
It’s that time again. The other day on CNBC a graphic was shown that stated Big 3 autoworkers were paid $63 – $67 an hour. Of course, this is not true. I suspect this figure was arrived at by the same method as the bogus figures in 2009. To get that number the companies’ combined active autoworker wages and benefits with those of retirees. Never mind that those retirees’ pensions should already be funded and were part of a compensation package in lieu of wages. It would be interesting to learn what executive pay looked like if we combined the current salary and stock options with those of past executives.
So, what does an autoworker see in the pay envelope? Let us dissect that paycheck.
Production autoworkers pay at the Big 3 ranges from $16.67 an hour for temporary workers to $32.34 for top-scale seniority members. Combine those figures and dividing them in half reveals a middle figure of $24.50 an hour.
Now let’s add the benefits…
401K
$24.50 X 6.4% (Co, matches straight time hours only): $1.56
Add $1.00 per straight time hour: $1.00
Total 401k benefits $2.56
Health Insurance
These figures are from actual W-2’s issued by GM
Family Coverage $27,896 per year / 2080: $13.41 per hour
Single Coverage $14,652 per year/ 2080: $7.04 per hour
Employer FICA (Social Security, Medicare)
$24.50 x 7.65%: $1.87 per hour
Misc (State and Fed. Unemployment, Work Comp, etc.)
$24.50 X 15%: $3.67 per hour
Total Compensation
Autoworker with a family $46.01 per hour
Autoworker – Single $39.64 per hour
Those figures are a long way from $63-$67 an hour. Consider that payroll expenses are also tax deductible, and many states offer automakers tax credits tied to employee pay. These make the cost to the employer lower than the figures listed.
It is contract time. This time let’s put misinformation aside and deal with facts. The Big 3 have reported profits of $250 billion in the last ten years. That is enough to buy every NBA, NHL, and MLB team and still have fifty billion dollars in the bank!
If they can afford to buy sports leagues, increase executive pay, and spend billions on stock buybacks, they can give those building the products a fair deal.
( free graphic via clipart library)
