United Auto Workers union President Ron Gettelfinger has expressed that he wants to keep Chrysler with Daimler, and he plans to take his case to the German company’s supervisory board, which is also believed to be in favor of keeping Chrysler. Gettelfinger, speaking to press at a news conference to announce Chrysler’s plans to invest $1.78 billion in Michigan plants, and said that there are advantages in keeping the companies together. Speaking to the reporters Gettelfinger said that they are going to do their very best to keep Chrysler under DaimlerChrysler.
It is for the first time Gettelfinger has publicly stated that he was prepared to fight the sale first proposed in February when DCX chief executive officer Dieter Zetsche said ‘all options are on the table’ when it came to restructuring the Chrysler unit. After giving indication that Chrysler is up for sale many interested buyers have shown their keen interest in buying Chrysler unit. The potential buyer who have expressed interest in buying the Chrysler group include billionaire Kirk Kerkorian, Canadian auto parts supplier Magna and two investment firms, Cerberus, and Blackstone and Centerbridge.
As a matter of fact, since the very beginning Gettelfinger has been against DamilerChrysler selling its US operations to private equity investors whom he says will ’strip and flip’ the company by selling it off in parts. While defending his views on propective sale he said that frustrated shareholders should bear in mind that Chrysler was still doing much better than General Motors and Ford and had made significant contributions to the broader DaimlerChrysler group.
However, regardless of a series of ‘restructurings’, Chrysler had reported an operating loss of $1.5-billion in 2006 as buyers shied away from its fuel-hungry trucks and SUV’s. UAW chief further extended that it would be better to focus on building better cars and trucks than trying to find a buyer for the loss-making unit.
The recent remarks on Chrysler’s future can be regarded as the strongest until now from the UAW, which experts perceive as having the potential to complicate or stall the sale process as contract talks with Chrysler and other Detroit automakers begin this summer. In the meanwhile, Chrysler Chief Executive Tom LaSorda refused to comment on the UAW’s position, saying only that ‘all options’ remained open regarding the division’s future.
