Chrysler Forced to Take Back 13 Union Workers Caught Drinking, Seemingly Getting High During Lunch
Remember back in 2010 when 13 Chrysler auto workers got busted drinking and smoking what appeared to be marijuana on the job? Sure you do, it was all over the news.
Unsurprisingly, once news of their “extracurricular” activities made headlines, they were promptly fired by the embarrassed automaker for violating company policy.
But here’s something new: Chrysler has been forced to reinstate all 13 of the disgraced employees. As it turns out, the 13 kicked back against the company’s decision and filed a grievance and entered arbitration.
Amazingly enough, the arbitrator decided to give them their jobs back. No, seriously, the arbiter sided with the 13 fired employees and Chrysler has been forced to reinstate them.
If the arbiter’s decision has got you hot under the collar, know that you’re not alone. Chrysler doesn’t seem very happy with the decision either.
The following is a public statement issued by the company [via My Fox Detroit]:
Chrysler Group LLC acknowledges the reinstatement of a number of employees from the Jefferson North assembly plant who were discharged from the company in September 2010 after appearing in a local TV station’s story about their off-duty conduct.
While the company does not agree with the ultimate decision of the arbitrator, we respect the grievance procedure process as outlined in the collective bargaining agreement and our relationship with the UAW. Unfortunately, the company was put in a very difficult position because of the way the story was investigated and ultimately revealed to the public. These employees from Jefferson North have been off work for more than two years. The time has come to put this situation behind us and resume our focus on building quality products that will firmly establish Chrysler Group’s position in the marketplace.
Were Chrysler representatives forced to deliver that statement aloud, we can’t help but think that it would have been done entirely through gritted teeth.
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Featured image courtesy My Fox Detroit.
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Comments (151)
Polarized America
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 2:13pmAdd your comments
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apexmoon
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 2:48pm” …and resume our focus on building quality products that will firmly establish Chrysler Group’s position in the marketplace.”
Yeah, quality products from a drunk, stoned guy. I knew there was a reason I buy foreign.
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Polarized America
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 3:05pm..i knew a guy who got fired for changing a ..3 ..into an ..8 ..on his pay check
but the Union got his job back because the teller at the Bank didn’t initial the check when she cashed it, so they couldn’t prove who did it ..but like i said, i knew this guy and he was rather greedy
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freeberty
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 3:09pmEveryone knows that you don’t have to buy a Chrysler product right?
You get all bent over this, and right now there is some government union parasite, getting drunk and high, and in the case of firefighters and police, 95% are right now, playing video games or watching porn, on the job.
You also realize that you not only are you being force to pay their wages, but also their union dues?
Why don’t you get a little outraged over that?
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Gold Coin & Economic News
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 3:42pmMore union thuggery responsible for the demise of our nation. It’s just like the Hostess union strikes that crippled the company:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdZiUESrGQQ
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JustMyOwnOpinion
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 3:52pmApexmoon, Chrysler is now foreign. Owned by Fiat, an Italian company.
We have only ONE American car company left–Ford.
Chrysler is owned by an Italian company.
General Motors is owned by the US Government, which is definitely anti-American.
Ford is still owned here in the good-old-USA.
Yes, we don’t have to buy foreign. Nor should be required to by domestic. I personally buy quality.
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wordsofwisdom
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 4:01pmThis is how unions strangle companies making it almost impossible to get rid of non productive employees that only bleed them dry because of the union protections against getting fired. They force people to pay union dues that are used to re-elect politicians that are destroying the country systematically which will destroy your job & your future. But you people keep helping them destroy your life like good little lemmings. How stupid is that? Makes me wonder if “The End Times” http://www.reverbnation.com/play_now/song_10381143 are really here as this song says.
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captjack63
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 4:17pmI’ll bet you they got all their back pay for the last two years while smoking pot and drinking while others who were not caught did their jobs.
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siobhan3270
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 4:49pmCapt Jack, what makes you think they were ever OFF the payroll. This is why I avoid companies that are union, foreign or domestic.
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aproudinfidel
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 4:50pmJust another great things about unions…job security for miscreants.
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The_Jerk
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 5:26pmWe all lose. Despicable behavior wins again. We need to know who the arbitrator was, a name. He/she needs to be shamed.
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subic
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 6:17pmThe Chrysler “CHOOM GANG” has Barry’s blessing, he bets on their reliability, honesty and steadfast devotion to build quality cars. They’re just taking after their dear leader.
What a job, getting paid to get stoned, buzzed, booze it up & milk the clock, while on the clock! Its the liberal way.
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toto
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 11:55pmInsane, they are taking America down. On purpose. God help the United States of America, this is NOT what our soldiers have fought and died for. Hope able bodied young people, with at least half a brain, get a clue and rise up, otherwise we are doomed to repeat the very worst of histories lessons.
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Trigus
Posted on December 11, 2012 at 6:46amThis is why Fiat will be moving Jeep production to italy or china.
http://nlpc.org/cached/fiat-says-chrysler-jeep-production-may-move-italy.html
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Zipit
Posted on December 11, 2012 at 9:27amTRI! I guess if the steering wheel falls off my Fiat, er Jeep, I will know who to blame!!
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Americanius
Posted on December 11, 2012 at 11:41amSo who is liable if one of those 13 incompetent workers screws up on the assembly line? The arbitrator, union or Chrysler? Chrysler of course. No wait. The union owns a part of Chrysler now. So look for some ambulance chasing firm to file suit against Chrysler and UAW to determine if those workers were near their client’s wrecked vehicle during assembly. And I hope they win big.
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DeniseJ
Posted on December 11, 2012 at 12:50pmLet me refer to the current pictures of Detroit! HOW many years did the ‘big 3′ complain that union demands would bankrupt them??? See what unions and progressive rule has brought.
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jungle J
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 2:11pmunion leadership is the problem..unions are inanimate…progressives rail as if they were conservatives on these articles…the enemy within the country the church the fraternal org.’s are the problem.
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redfish52
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 2:37pmOut of all the cars I’ve owned I can proudly say I have never owned a Chrysler…and after my GM truck dies it will be my last US Union made automobile…from now on only vehicles made from “Right to Work ” states by non-union “Happy” workers who know they can’t go out at lunchtime and get drunk just because the company is afraid to buck the union…..
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Blackhawk1
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 2:46pmredfish52
There is good news for Michigan residents. Our Republican legislature has passed a Right To Work Bill here that our Republican Governor Rick Snyder should sign within the next few weeks. The unions are running around with their heads on fire. The guys I know that are pro-union claim that it’s unfair. I tell them what the liberals tell us conservatives. The Republicans won here in Michigan and control the State Government, quit complaining!
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Gorp
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 2:51pmMy question is: Do they get back pay too? Two years of back pay and benefits will amount to quite a bit.
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redfish52
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 4:06pm@blackhawk1….good to hear…have been paying attention to it on FOX….I hope it takes hold..I doubt it but good luck
@gorp…good point….I would almost bet they were given full benefits and back pay since the company basically had to say they were wrong to let them go..I’ve got to get me one of those “Union” jobs…no wait…I still have pride, a soul and a conscience…
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DesertRose1960
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 2:11pmPeople make jokes about how hard it is to fire a Federal worker or a union worker, but they don’t look at the rules of the contract. There are procedures set in place to terminate employees, if you follow the rules and use the procedures, the person you fired will not come back. Someone tipped off the Fox TV station and Fox took it upon itself to follow these guys and to confront them, with at least two cameras. The guys refused to talk to the new crew, the news crew took the film to the plant and without following procedure, the plant fired the workers. The workers got their jobs back because of the laziness of the plant managers. I’m not condoning the actions of the workers, drinking and drugging is not acceptable behavior. Contracts often have procedures for drug testing employees suspected of drug and alcohol abuse. They have rules about getting help for a problem if they failed a drug test. The TV station acted recklessly and so did management. If they had investigated on their own, found real evidence of their drug abuse, and then given them a chance at diversion, I will bet the men would have been fired for good. You folks always talk about you love of freedom and personal responsibility, but you side with an anonymous snitch and a sleazy news crew practicing “Gotcha” journalism. How would you like it if someone followed you around for ten days without you’re knowing about it and then put it on the news? What would you do to protect your job?
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Watcher1952
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 2:27pmI would follow the rules of employment in the first place….these 13 sleazy people put themselves and fellow workers in jeopardy of being hurt or killed due to them being impaired on the job……supervisors are afraid of the unions bosses….they will be relieved of their jobs for harrassment…..I am so glad that Michigan has joined the RIGHT TO WORK states…..
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Stelex
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 2:27pmI say we have these 13 car makers make a car just for DesertRose. We’ll even take up a collection.
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BoricuaEn Arizona
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 2:29pmTo protect my job I would not use drugs nor engage in illegal activities.
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ProudCapitalist
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 3:10pmWe need a National Right to Terminate law, to go with a National Right to Work law.
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AvengerK
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 3:26pmYes very good TOKYOROSE. You being the resident unionista of the Blaze would have a vested interest in distracting from the corruption of union practices wouldn’t you? So it’s “gotcha” journalism is it when Chrysler employees are filmed getting stoned and drunk on company time and not a peep out of you for the contempt the union lackeys show to their employer or the ones who ultimately keep them employed..their customers. You truly sicken me you vile lefty wretch.
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DesertRose1960
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 3:47pm@Avengerk, you know, I’ve seen how some of the people on this website treat you. They’re just as “polite” and “warm” in their greetings to you as you are to me. It makes me smile. I didn’t say these men shouldn’t be disciplined, but they were on their lunch time and not on company property. Do you know if they were even still on shift? If their behavior was affecting their work, then they could be subjected to productivity checks and quality inspections; it’s really easy with assembly line work. The TV station was spying on them in a public park. How would you like to be ratted out to your boss by a TV crew?
@Watcher1952, You do realize that workers in “Right to Work” states make less money and have fewer benefits and, of course, few protections if their boss doesn’t like them.
@Boricuaen I wouldn’t endanger my job, either. Lots of people drink, not on the job, but during their lunches or at home or even on the weekends. If you allow news crews to follow people and get them fired without “due process” you set yourself up for being the next target. You give up some of your freedom. I knew teachers who spent hours in a local bar eating and drinking after work and going to work the next day. I knew a gas company man who drank a 6-pack or more every night, seven days a week. I could never do that.
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Max jones
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 4:06pmDesrtRose….blah blah bla, blahba blahbah. bibabba blah blah bah bibia blah!! a further more from my vast education: blah blah blababa bah!
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Max jones
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 4:14pmROSE whatever you do, never stand up for PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY. Keep on playing your legalese patty cake. Someday right and wrong will come into your consciousness….I will bet you won’t be able to tell the difference. But that’s the way libs roll, ain’t it, baby?
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RonThundrEagle
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 4:44pmAnd maybe this plant will shut down soon so ALL WORKERS there will be out of a job. Just so these 13 can have their jobs back no matter how bad they broke the rules. Who knows maybe the car they build will be YOUR next ride too. We shall see though….
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bandi9
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 2:10pmtheir mommas probably called them names when they were children, so not their fault. puke
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Frederick_Douglass_Republican
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 2:10pmThe unions are run by communists. Have been since the 70′s
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MrSunshine
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 2:01pmTalk about teflon!
Go ahead shop stewards and the like, please try to defend this….with some sense of LOGIC!
Yeah, I don’t expect much.
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Thornyrose13
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 2:00pmI wonder if we can require the arbiter and his extended family to be limited to driving cars built by these 13 people? Also, should bodily injury or death result due to the re-instatment of these workers, does that mean the government assumes the liability? I will be sure to pass this on to friends and family.
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Cemoto78
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 2:15pmThat’s an excellent point. I would assume the government would take on all the liability seeing that they own the company. It’s an Obama world.
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hi
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 1:59pmDemocrat slogan: Get Wasted and Freeload…the new American Dream.
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Angel_light
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 2:25pmyou got that right
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Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 1:55pmUnions, legal criminal syndicates.
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HotFixIt
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 2:20pmI bet they don’t allow on the job drug testing either!
Now I know why my 2007 Chrysler 300 has had to have the gear shift replaced…. and the transmission went out this past July. The car has less than 47,000 miles on it. This has been the most expensive car to keep repaired.. constant repairs and nothing has been covered.
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Max jones
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 4:23pmYeah I had one chrysler in my life….hunk of junk…..but FAST….for a short while.
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carolinaconservative
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 1:54pmI think that I may have purchased one of the last vehicles that they worked on prior to them being fired. My car has some unique features, namely, the car goes in reverse when I put it in Drive, windshield wash fluid hits me in the face when I engage it. Great during the summer but don’t like the ice bath in the winter. Headlights turn on when I hit my brakes. I can go on but you get my drift. Now I guess my vehicle won’t be so unique as these workers will be building more like mine!
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Detroit paperboy
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 1:53pmMy brand new top of the line loaded to the max !!!! Is a Toyota Tundra……… Never will I buy union again…by the way, it was built in San Antonio….
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DesertRose1960
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 2:14pmIn Japan, Toyota is heavily unionized. Funny, they can deal with Japanese unions but not American ones? I’ll bet you the standard of living for the Texas Toyota worker is a lot lower than for the Japanese worker…who has excellent and cheap healthcare, by the way.
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GardenoftheGods
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 2:14pmLove my Hyundai built in Tennessee!!! Remember the old “Look for the Union Label”? I do & buy elsewhere!!
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Blackhawk1
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 2:40pmDesertRose1960
I bet you are wrong. Toyota may be unionized in Japan but they can’t afford union labor here in the States. I also wouldn’t compare Japan standard of living to a Toyota worker in Texas. Somehow living in a cramped apartment in Tokyo, paying 50% of your wages to the Government in taxes for crappy healthcare. I found these on a Japan travel guide.
Owning a car in Japan is expensive due to the mandatory bi-annual inspections (shaken), mandatory insurance, an automobile tax and the fee for a parking space (in large cities).
Japanese **** dressers are famous for their great service and high prices
Utilities such as gas, water and especially electricity are expensive, and phone rates are high.
Some of the world’s most expensive land can be found in central Tokyo. Consequently, even tiny apartments in the city center are very expensive.
I think I would much rather live in Texas making $28.00 an hour with NO State income tax.
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BladeFyre
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 2:56pm@Desertrose1960 As someone who worked for Toyota, here in the states, they pay for the healthcare (okay I had to pay $25/paycheck because I got the Employee-Spouse-Family Buy Up plan {The very best offered}), plus the benefits (401K matching AND Toyota Pension, vacation, sick time, etc. ) are awesome, and the plants are clean and safe.
Yes it is true they have unionized plants in Japan (not all of them are by the way), but if the unions were to infiltrate the plants here in the USSA, they would RUIN it for the common worker. As an employee I had it made, I would say the second best job in my life!
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DesertRose1960
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 3:31pm@Blackhawk, I’ve been to Tokyo. I know how the Japanese live. I also know they spend less on their medical care than we do but live longer. Yes, owning a car is expensive, but mass transit is cheap and excellent. I had no problems getting around Tokyo on their subway. I would rather have a small apartment in Tokyo than a big house in Texas. I’m very fond of a gorgeous little park near the French embassy and the Meiji Shrine, in the heart of Harajuko is beautiful and so tranquil. The thing that keeps me away from Japan is the earthquakes. Tokyo will be destroyed, there is no way around it.
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Hodmokrin
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 1:53pmNo big deal, Ford does it to. I know someone personally who was caught drinking on the job, grieved for his job, got it back, with back pay, then 6 months later accepted a buyout that included 1/2 of his salary for 4 years, and a full ride to a college of his choice. Ain’t the UAW grand?
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olderjarhead
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 1:52pmC’mon man, who does have a blunt, and a 40 on their lunch break?
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LeadNotFollow
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 1:51pmHave you noticed how the number 13 keeps turning up everywhere, ever since Obama was first elected in 2008?
Every time I turn on the TV, radio, or internet, the number 13 turns up multiple times daily.
This cannot just be a coincidence.
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Hodmokrin
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 1:58pmGo watch the movie “23″ with Jim Carrey…. or maybe not.
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Small World
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 2:03pmI’ve had the #666 show up and my daughter also Yikes!
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LeadNotFollow
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 2:21pmSMALL – You’re right. The number 666 also has been popping up a lot these past four years.
Watch for 333. It’s half of 666 and it’s being used as the new code number for 666.
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OldSurfRat
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 1:50pmOh boy this is rich.
As a company owner first let me say that the union would never set foot in my company. I would do the hostess dance, close my doors and open up the next day under a new corp.
If it was me they would hate their job soooooo much that they would quit in no time.
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progressiveslayer
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 2:16pmI applaud your POV and wish all business owners would do the same,unfortunately unions have a lot of power and the support of the Marxist POS currently dismantling capitalism.
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OldSurfRat
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 2:32pmProgressive
Dont get me wrong I dont care what an employee does off the clock as long as when they punch in they are clear headed and ready to go.
I had the chance as a younger man to go union but even at 19yrs old I saw what to me looked more like a cult than a job. So here I am many years later not kissing the union **** and making my own way.
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progressiveslayer
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 2:54pmSame here I could care less what they do off the clock but those tools were on the clock. I detest unions both private and especially public sector. Public sector unions are bankrupting several states and it’s only a matter of time before they implode. When you have an employee that can’t be fired that’s reason enough for me to ban all unions.
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OldSurfRat
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 3:50pmProgressive
I’m with ya on that. If you suck then your a$$ has to go. No if, ands or buts.
As I said it’s none of my business what you do at home but your a$$ is mine if you come around my place of business drunk etc. But hey they are union slakers so what do you exspect.
Dont answer that (:
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susie4dy
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 1:49pmJust remeber this when buying a Chrysler !
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RightUnite
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 2:03pmOr don’t buy one at all…
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Shasta
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 2:26pmI used to believe in the slogan ‘Buy American’ when it came to automobiles…until I did a little research on unions and union workers. Now I buy Honda’s and Toyota’s.
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RejectFalseIcons
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 3:43pmYup, the day after the bailout, I traded in my (less than 1 year old) pontiac for a mazda. My wife’s car is a toyota, and my next car will be as well.
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Mess23
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 1:49pmThis, and the bail out, is why I bought a new Toyota..
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OldSurfRat
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 1:56pmLOL yep I’m a nissan man myself
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Derek01
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 1:59pm+1 on that. I will never buy a Chrysler or Chevy
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WillG
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 1:47pmThat is the Unions for you. One of the many factors that has brought our once Great Nation to its proverbial knees.
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term limits for congress
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 1:47pmChoomer’s 13
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doomytram
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 1:46pmYou can’t fire affirmative action Obozo supporters after getting drunk and high. These are the future of the American Car Industry. Smack this bumper sticker on you Chrysler 300 “The Auto industry is alive and Osama Bin Laden is dead” Thanks to Obozo!
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Richardoky
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 6:49pmNo the future in the Auto industry will be temeparies and automation. The days of the good paying jobs are about gone.
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FaithfulFriend
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 1:46pmAnyone here still driving a Chrysler with over 80k miles on it because they last?
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Obama Snake Oil Co
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 1:45pmSo Chrysler is forced to take on the liability of these workers?
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Old Truckers
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 2:22pmYes, and they will pass the liability cost onto the Chrysler buyer.
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RightUnite
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 1:45pmYET ANOTHER REASON why I will NEVER, EVER, EVER again buy a Chrysler vehicle EVER AGAIN!!
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planeboy
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 1:45pmHow progressive! Unions…the bain of capitalism…
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banjarmon
Posted on December 10, 2012 at 1:45pmUNIONS will be the DEATH of America’s power in the world!!
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