Business Insight Zone

That’s the prevailing question now that UAW workers have set down their tools at Chrysler plants. On one hand, Cerberus seems to be rich enough to weather a long strike. On the other, the UAW may want to extract more concessions from it because it can’t plead (relative) poverty like Ford and GM can.

This MSNBC article supplies some good context:

Chrysler strike could be a long one

The issues at stake in the Chrysler talks are similar to those between the union and GM. While the automaker wants to reduce the nearly $20 billion it pays for active workers, retirees and their families’ health care — which U.S. automakers say add some $1,500 to the cost of building each car — the UAW wants to preserve much of those benefits and wants Chrysler to also guarantee that certain new products will be built at UAW-staffed factories.

But those guarantees may be hard to squeeze out of Chrysler’s new owner Cerberus, which is looking to put in place a more competitive structure at Chrysler.

My thumbnail guess — in line with what I said yesterday — is that the UAW will find this negotiation to be a different kettle of fish from what they’ve encountered before.