Walker Road Underpass

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• Well, Guido, it's easy to defend unions when you have a high paying job, but you're putting the cart before the horse. It's not high paying union jobs that build communities, it's just jobs that build communities. You think it's better to have 1,000 high paying union jobs and 9,000 people unemployed instead of 10,000 people employed, which is what happens when companies see it makes them a lot less competitive to operate in this city. I think it's ridiculous to think that just because the wages drop that the crime rate would go up. More people will have jobs, so the crime rate would go down.. You're part of a special interest minority group that's trying to make it difficult for the majority. I take your self-righteousness for misdirected arrogance.

• Guido, I understand the need for a union but lets be real. Many of these unions have run roughshod over their employers and thus either bankrupted a few or driven them to go overseas.
  My point was that the union collective agreement might not allow for nighttime work without premiums and thus increasing the cost of the project which in the need would also increase the timeframe of the project to be completed.

• Some of you obviously are to ignorant to understand the collective bargaining process but FYI both parties mutually come to an agreement on wages and benefits. The union does not hold a gun to the employers head. If company is going bankrupt it is more likely because of mismanagement. I still sense a lot of jealousy here.
  I am not going to keep responding to this ideology of ingnorance this site is not the place for it.

• here we go again mr david bad mouthing unions wow you are truly jealous of the good wages they make?I agree with guido WE NEED GOOD PAYING JOBS NOT THE Crappy $10 an hour jobs that david and me want in this city

• You're right, Guido, since two parties cannot mutually come to an agreement on wages and benefits in Windsor, companies with unions are leaving Windsor in droves. I heard that Honda announced a new non-union engine plant to be built in Alliston, ON, while we're losing our engine plant in Windsor. I'm sure the Honda plant is paying a lot more than $10 an hour. Hmmm, I wonder what the unemployment rate is in Alliston, ON?

• why dont you go work there david?honda pays $30 because the big three pay thier employess that again because of the union thats the only reason why honda pays 30 an hour. if you think that only union shops are leaving windsor then you live in a fantasy world david I know quite a few shops that are non union and have left windsor BECAUSE OF THE HIGH DOLLAR AND UNFAIR TRADE NOT UNIONS.If you hate the fact windsor is a union town pack your bags and leave david and dont let the door hit you on your way out.Honda by the way is probably the only employer who pays over 10 an hour in alliston and from what i have been told most of the honda employees dont even live in alliston they live in toronto.I had a honda employee tell me that yes they dont want the union in there but they know because of the "evil caw" thats why they make $30 AN HOUR working on the line.

• I understand unions and management quite well. The fact remains if you own your own business and the union wants the money either they go on strike, which affects your business and can make you bankrupt, get scab labour, or move.

  The problem here Guido is that you are on the exteme side of the spectrum and David is on the other side. You both make good arguments but must meet somewhere in the middle.

  Let's be honest here in Windsor the unions have had a free hand for far too long and now those chickens have come home to roost. I also agree that management has screwed up as well but the union militancy, perceived or not, has given this city a black eye that will take generations to overcome.

• paul, please explain this unfair trade (barring China of course). If you are talking about Japan, the reasons our cars don't sell there are 1) too big and too hard on gas for that country. 2) a perceived notion of poor quality. In the latter that is another reason why Japanese vehicles are kicking the Big 3's butt. What have they done to prevent this illusion from taking over? Nothing.

• ok me havent you heard of the recalls that toyota has had especially with the tundra?the big three have vastly improved thier quality since the 80s while toyota still very good but has dropped slighlty?and yes me i mean japan I can tell you have never worked in a auto plant and dont seem to care that thousands of people are losing thier jobs because of the jap cars(unfair trade)some places that are poorly run do need the union some dont but that is not the overall reason why companies are leaving.free trade is causing these companies including the big three to close shops in windsor and across canada because they know that countries like china and mexico people there are willing to do the work for 1.00 an hour.toyota and honda also have plants in these countries too.toyota has publicly said they cant see any more investment coming to canada because of the government is too slow to act on auto investment .there is also a rumor that toyotas second woodstock plant has been cancelled due to the high costs in this country.

• I also heard that alot of plants in cambridge where the almighty toyota having been closing up as well thier mayor has publicly complained that the government needs to step in and do something to protect manfacturing jobs.