Right on, Zac....

GM would probably run at least as well as it does now if 75% of it's white collar workers were fired.

I also think this would work for the US government.

I say this only partially with tongue in cheek.

So everyone gets the discount but if an employee uses it , its wrong? I SEE WHY GM HAS BEEN IN TROUBLE SINCE THE 70'S.

If there is a lesson that Toyota has taught us all, it is that you can't succeed in the car business without paying attention to every detail.

You can't have it both ways at once -- you can't demand that GM turn itself around, and then criticize it for putting the necessary focus on ethics, cost accounting, etc.

GM needs to come clean on the ERISA Litigation. They think they are victims? How about the blue & white collars that bought their stock between 1999 & 2006 only to be told that they witheld information to us stockholders on how piss poor the company was actuall doing??!! Now thats newsworthy information, not this bulls**t about how people misused their stupid GM discount! Apples to oranges. Lets see GM ERISA is a modest $37.5 million that GM needs to dish out. And GM is whining about $475 thousand??!! Get a f**king life, and take care of the people you f**ked in the past a**h**es!

People are not going to buy these hideous gas guzzlers with or without the employee discount. Soon, GM will be giving away the SUVs and trucks for free. It's just a matter of time that this poorly-managed company fails (if no bailout by government).

http://financial-cents.blogspot.com/2008/09/another-bailout-gm-wants-your-tax-money.html

Actually, truck sales are off for all carmakers, import and domestic. Meanwhile, GM has a number of cars and crossovers that are doing quite well -- Malibu, CTS, Aura, Vibe, Enclave. And of our next 19 launches, 18 are cars and crossovers. So don't count us out yet.

If Gm focused more on products that American Consumers wanted, they wouldn't have to resort
desperate incentives to drive sales. GM has to come to the realization that their products are
priced above the average consumers afforability.
It's going to get worse for them. The Japanese
are growing in the US at the D3's expense, so
why is GM Losing? The right product at the right
price sells. It's a simple formula...

I am looking for a new car and since reading this GM will no longer me on our list.

GM has made great progress in the quality aspect of manufacturing now if GM could get the UAW to kick back the Billions of dollars they have milked from GM & there employees they might be able to regain there financial status in the Automotive market .. Just ask Toyota, keep up the great work Oh by the way I love my new 08 vette great gas mileage Thanks Mike SAVAGE

The carmakers should have thought about it before going ahead giving the employers the employee discounts. This is what happens when people take advantage of the carmakers and the carmakers lose money!.

oooooohhh come on gm grow up

"And then there's the fact that it's unclear whether GM really lost anything: would people have bought the cars without the discount?" Because you speculate that something could have happened differently than the way it did we should justify a breach of contract? That isn't very solid logic. There is still such a thing as right and wrong, believe it or not. No amount of debating will change that.

I live in the Detroit area. Everytime I've gone into ANY dealerships the first question the salesperson asks you is, "Do you know anyone who can get you the A plan?" I've had salespeople offer to give me one of their plans. Also, advertising in this area is tricky. They advertise this GREAT lease price, but indicate in small print that it's employee pricing only. If you ask me, this all but ENCOURAGES everyone to get the plan from ANYONE. They did it to themselves.

To sue one's own employees is unthinkable, and makes no sense whatsoever, especially when the company is doing exactly the same thing in offering employee discounts to all. The negative public relations this creates will due tremendous damage. The author of the lawsuits deserves to be terminated.
As I work on our corporate budget for this next year, I will let my salesman know that we will no longer pursue GM products. Personally, I have purchased GM cars and pickups for 40 years, this will end now as well.

If GM would use their heads instead of trying to follow the Japanese and learn a few lessons in management that would help! Everytime a new manager comes you can bet things are going to change like who can have a tool box and is it in the painted square!!! Throw out every part not in use it looks cluttered!!! Train a fire squad then not allow them to go near a fire!!! Just a few examples of things that cost them money it doesn;t seem like much but put it with foremen who are put in charge of electricians and they are carpenters think of the money being wasted!!!

This is for TomWilkinsonatGM: I believe if GM hadn't killed the electric car they would be doing much better then the other auto makers and not be struggling at all! Tell the people what you did with all the EV1 cars you had! Tell them how GM took them back from consumers and crushed them all! Brand new cars no less! WHY? Because oil companies can't make money from electric cars that people can just plug into their homes to recharge!Perhaps if you weren't in bed with the oil companies,( don't deny it, Americans aren't stupid) you would be using the technology we know you have to build cars that get 50+ MPG! You do that plus bring back the electric car you could be on top again! Now, you couldn't pay me to take a GM vehicle! Even your hybrids are ridiculous! So over-priced just so we can get 5 extra MPG then a regular model? The auot makers need to stop treating the American people like they are totally ignorant and give us what we want and are willing to buy!

The big oil companies should buy the overstock suvs and then give them away in contests.
They will easily double thier money in no time.

Hope all you foreign car buyers are happy next thing we will be all eating rice because your American dollars went to Japan. Shame on any of you that own a non American car you should all be paying big tax bills because of it. If your a real American you should be driving a real American car and thats the bottom line get with the program or suffer later. Yea my Chevys and Oldsmobiles might not get 30 mpg but I fed an American worker with the money I spent buying my American cars

GM like our congress is to top heavy, they are stuck in the 60's. Outside of a few good looking models..they are lost. Now they are trying to blame or go after some employees who just tried to help out and make some of the thousands of models that were stuck on the lots of their dealers sell...come on now..who is fooling who here. GM is a day late and a dollar short...they can't even get out a new model the CAMARO out..its been years and still no production....they get what they deserve

I am and have been a Mechanic for over 40 Years and a Master Technician since they started using the phrase. I wrote G.M. and sent E-mails when they had an open acceptance of E-Mails until they shut it down and started IGNORING E-Mails attempting to HELP them turn around the Company for at least 15 Years when I tried to get a Radiator out of a V/6 Pontiac Passenger Car where according to them it required 2 Hours Labor. The Engineers appeared to be intent on destroying the Company. And will not listen to anyone else who has good ideas. Must be all born in some other countryand bent on helping the Import manufacturers.