Retraining for different jobs is not easy for deposed GM workers

Retraining for different jobs is not easy for deposed GM workers

	Published : Mon, 26 Dec 2005 20:05 By : Paula Demarzio Print this Story

FLINT, Michigan - Displaced workers in General Motors Corp are finding it difficult to retrain for a new job at a late stage of their careers. Some of them are taking computer lessons at full pay, but it is clear that this will not be as simple as changing tyres or even brake fluid.

Already thousands have lost their jobs and though they continue to receive full salary and benefits while they retrain for new jobs, it is clear to them that time is running out. And unless GM negotiates a new contract with United Auto Workers, these "downsized" workers could be left in the lurch. The problem is not going to go away anytime soon since it is estimated that another 30,000 job cuts are on the anvil over the next three years. The retraining program was a part of the effort to force GM to stay put in the country, but it has come a long way since 1984, when it began. It now offers the only hope for those without jobs and those slated to lose their jobs in the near future.

"It was a different situation when the program was established," said GM spokesman Stefan Weinmann. "People would be called back a lot more then and they were in the jobs bank for a relatively short time." Many people have managed to learn alternate trades, but there are some like 55-yera-old Tim Gartland who just cannot get used to the computer keyboard, "I worked with my hands all my life and I feel crazy not doing a job," he says. "I thought I could make it on the outside but I couldn't. When you work in a GM town you have to stay with them if you're going to keep your head above water." Gartland and others like him in the retraining facility want some answers and they want them fast. Some say the management is responsible for their plight, while others blame the government. "There's a lot of reasons why the company is going down and we're stuck here," Gartland said. "We've got a lot of qualified people in here. We want to work - so give us the work."

But as is always the case it is easier to talk, there are very few companies that have entry-level jobs for older workers like Gartland. Many of the displaced workers are moving on to Asian carmakers like Toyota and Hyundai, which are rapidly expanding. But even then they have to move towards different parts in the country and it is not always possible. Until a solution is found, Gartland and many others like him have to keep pounding on a keyboard.