Inside GM: "Go on Take the Money and RUN"

Another email from a GM insider: “Meet Rick, unassuming book worm with a penchant of fixing all things mechanical. Rick was a 12 year veteran of GM, spending 7 years as a journeyman Machine repairman. Due to a constantly shrinking work force, Rick soon had to relocate. Luckily, Rick’s first transfer kept him in his skilled trade and fortunately keep another well rounded expert in mechanical issues with the Corporation. Rick was content with the move but according to him ‘I wouldn’t wish that shit on anyone.’ Little did Rick know that the plant he just re-located to was soon announced that within 8 months it would cease production. Left with the option of hoping like hell another plant needed manpower or immerse himself in the job market, OL’ Rick again rented a U-Haul. It was in October 2003 that I had meet Rick. It still leaves me missing his daily ‘Hey dude, if its done this way, shit would be better’ remarks.

Rick backed up said statements through the bureaucratic hell we inside the Beast refer to as The SUGGESTION PLAN network. Its a spin on what the foreign transplant facilities had been doing for years. Its really a great way to filter ideas on manufacturing cost savings and throughput, quality and all the other things that brings together a sense in ownership among the workforce. Only problem with this idea is the amount of crap that clogs the filter.

Case in point: one suggestion to repaint aisle way lines with corresponding dates rewarded the suggestor a $650 advancement on his check.

Rick’s suggestion relied more on his knack for watching the habits of mechanisms around him. Our own little Goodwill Hunting of the Industrial world placed a suggestion that saved scrap cost an amazing $112,000 in a calendar year. Rick’s reward? An umbrella and an entry into the plants Holiday raffle.

So what you say? He should have done this because he works for GM,right! He already draws a good living and should support the cause. Problem is, Rick agreed. It’s job security. It’s a reduction in waste and another fine effort in reduction of expenditures.

The Suggestions that employees enter have to be approved by management. Once approved the suggestion then enters the realm of applicability. This is a dangerous realm. Chock full of wicked nay-sayers. Self righteous middle and upper management that wallow in laziness. To implement is to do, to do is to work and surely they have to much on their platter to investigate a suggestion.

Rick’s suggestion would change tooling on many of the robots in his area, robots that moved parts of the sub-assembly from station to station. Occasional ”mis-grips” caused some components to slip and fall to the floor. After a cleaning of the area, any part that was malformed from the ”mis-grip” was shit-canned.

Rick attended team meetings and explained his suggestion to no avail. He stopped the plant manager, again to no avail. Rick went as far as to draft the sequence in which the tooling could be placed and explained that to reconfigure the tooling could take place in under 3 hours. One wall after another was what Rick ran into. Not to be discouraged, Rick continued to enter suggestions, sometimes he would go into other departments of the plant to seek out inefficiencies. Then one day his reply came back: implementation on tooling change cannot be accepted.

Rick retreated to his readings of spacial relations, particularly anything Hawkin. He was fond of saying that the book “A brief history of Time” was the idiot’s guide to feeling like an idiot. Always sticking to the unassuming role, Rick would confide in me how much he enjoyed making cars and doing it with GM. We could build an untouchable car if we wanted to. WE can design better than the japs. WE can do this and that.

It was then that I realized Rick was constantly thinking about the manufacturing of vehicles. All the while time was running out on Rick’s suggestion. Time limits are a bitch you know.

Over a year had passed and Rick’s suggestion was null and void. During a plant tour with executives from Corporate, a business unit superintendent SUGGESTED tooling changes would be implemented to reduce (get this shit) INCIDENTAL PART MALFORMITIES.

The evil empire won again.

When the presentation took place on this item the question was asked by one of the head honcho’s “Who came up with this idea?” Myself, replied the Super, along with help from our plants Millwright supervisor. I attended this meeting and spoke up on the behalf of Rick.This suggestion was turned in a year ago and credit should go to the proper employee. No such luck.

Returning to the area I went straight to Rick and explained what had taken place. He shrugged his shoulders and said “they can have it.” He had just signed the special attrition package. 12 years of service, 3 plants, numerous damn good ideas and the never ending “Rick Quest”of finding a better way to do things. $91,000 after taxes to leave it all behind.

The day he left we bid each other fare well and the promise to keep in contact. Before he left Rick could not find the Superintendent that cut him out. So he left his umbrella and a note simply saying “good luck.”

Rick is now employed at a foreign owned exhaust parts maker plant that services both GM and Honda. As a supervisor himself now, he has commented on the freedom of making changes regarding reducing anything redundant or wasteful. Sometimes these ideas work sometimes they dont.

But its the idea that these ideas are at least investigated that is the most reassuring.

The last conversation that Rick and I had regarded the Bridge loans, bail outs, whichever you like to call them.Though were separated by companies, our economic fate is intertwined. He’s remarked that his company cannot survive with the volume of only supplying Honda. It reminds me of what Rick said to me before he left GM. “Go on take the money and RUN.”