Anybody catch this Chrysler story?

Of course this is big news here in the Detroit area but I was wondering how it was playing nationally.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7TI58yHgk40

I'll keep my opinions to myself but it doesn't exactly make you want to rush out and buy a Chrysler product.

Wow... Just wow... Thats sad.

can't do the video.

i'm guessing it's this? http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/09/24/chrysler-auto-workers-drinking-lunch_n_738171.html

Read the book Rivethead by Ben Hamper. These Chrysler guys are wimps.

Once again, proud to be a Mopar guy.....

bluej wrote: can't do the video. i'm guessing it's this? http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/09/24/chrysler-auto-workers-drinking-lunch_n_738171.html

Yes, that is the one.

For any company of that size, statistically speaking there are probably going to be at least a few people drinking or smoking their lunch.

Yeah, who can be surprised by this? Lots of on-the-job drinking and smoking going on out there, people.

I think that story made the local news, EVERYWHERE in the U.S.

I guess what bothers me is the "fact" that in the tv news story I saw, so many folks were drinking "out in the open". I mean, it looked like a sort of improptu party. I guess I'm just used to folks hiding the fact that they drink during lunchhour.

And it's sad to say, and a bit scary, but I imagine something like this is only the tip of the iceberg. I have to imagine Chrysler/Jeep dealers EVERYWHERE were cringing when this story broke.

I can see it now, instead of bigger rebates, Chrysler/Jeep now offers to fill the trunk of every new car, truck, and SUV sold with beer bottles...some of them still full.

As a refugee from the manufacturing sector of the Motor City, let me say these guys are no rarity. I'd bet money they're still employed (or will get their jobs back soon) thanks to a good contract. I know they would at the tier-one supplier I worked at because we were on the same pattern contract.

There are a ton of good, honest, hardworking UAW employees, but management isn't allowed (by law) to treat them any better or different than slackjawed thieves like these guys seem to be. Don't hate the players, hate the game.

In reply to Feedyurhed:

I saw this on Jalopnik and my first thought was: "This might very well explain the Sebring Convertible in its entirety."

At most other jobs, they'd be fired. And in Michigan, there are 500,000 people who'd love to have their job-because they don't have any job right now.

On the radio talk shows, some people are trying to defend their actions. You should hear the excuses...

Ha, that's nothing. It was well known here in Janesville that the drinkin' went on during breaks. There was 4 bars within a 100 yards of GM property - heck one was even in the middle of the GM employee parking lot. Literally. It was there before one of the numerous plant expansions and the owner refused HUGE money to sell the property to GM - so they just built the lot around it.

If the Packers were on Monday Night Football the supervisors pretty much just counted on half of their second shift not coming back to work after lunch.

This reminds me of the "Safety" breifing I got a Detroit area stamping plant before a tour given to me and other students while I was in grad school. "There are three main hazrds you must be aware of. The stamping process here uses a thin film of oil on the metal which ends up on everthing. The stampings also have razor sharp edges. Remember the floor is oily and you are surrounded by dirty razor blades. The last hazard are the forklift and jintney drivers. Those that are sober, are not watching for you"

I love how Fox News tries to make this look like President Barack Obama had something to do with this. F you FOX news you are not helping. It loks like the same 5 or 6 guys out of how many hundreds at the plant? They are just some losers, who need to be fired, I'd bet $$$ they voted for McCain too. Harley t-shirts, yup, guranteed.

Wait, smoking weed and drinking in the parking lot at work is bad?

I lol'd, but then I'm a waiter. A few places I've worked at the bartenders have been E36 M3-housed by the end of the night. Never could understand why they seemed so mellow as they walked in the door for work either.

SupraWes wrote: I love how Fox News tries to make this look like President Barack Obama had something to do with this. F you FOX news you are not helping. It loks like the same 5 or 6 guys out of how many hundreds at the plant? They are just some losers, who need to be fired, I'd bet $$$ they voted for McCain too. Harley t-shirts, yup, guranteed.

Well, your jump to conclusions mat is working well if you know who they voted for, but I will agree with you that it has nothing to do with Obama. This stuff has been going on since there have been autoworkers. I blame Teddy Roosevelt!

In all seriousness, I have worked in UAW plants and this doesn't surprise me in the least. And of course there's no defending it. Having said that, it's not just autoworkers that do this, plenty of white-collar professionals have been known to imbibe on their lunch hours, hence the term "three martini lunch". Still, if you get busted, you get busted. Own it, you know it's wrong, even if others do it.

Kramer wrote: On the radio talk shows, some people are trying to defend their actions. You should hear the excuses...

Ya one of my favorites is that do it because they are under a lot of stress about maybe losing their jobs in this bad economy. Huh??

my B-I-Law had a job that protected the guys.

Dudes would steal from the company and if they got caught, they would claim alcohol problems and be allowed to go to a 30 day treatment and go back to work.

If they claimed drug problems, they would be fired. So the rule was if you got caught; talk about having alcohol problems and you keep your job.

I wonder how many wives were totally hacked at these dudes......."you did what?"

good point... so we see a couple dozen guys drinking and maybe smoking on their lunch break out of how many workers? Every workplace has some problem child.. when you get that many workers, you get more than a few.

Yay for Fox news to tie Obama to it. While I agree that the article needed to be seen and broadcasted.. I hate how Fox did it. Can we keep politics out of a serious non-policital issue?

Pat wrote: Once again, proud to be a Mopar guy.....

Yep.

Drinking on the job is bad mmm'kay!

Only if you drink more than the person you're negotiating with...

a recently closed factory of a recently bailed out american company (not naming manes but it's not chrysler) in my hometown employed a whole lot of people, many of whom I knew, and from what I heard it was common knowledge among the people there where the sleeping hideouts were in the factory, and they even had a bar in the parking lot of the place. I guess the only thing we know for certain is that if/when Ford employees get drunk/high, at least they are spending their own money.