Boycott GM?

Some pundits have called for boycotting General Motors, declaring that we should not support American auto companies that have been subsidized by the U.S. Government. Why - it's not as if the auto industry is the only industry that is subsidized - the government has helped and subsidized many industries for years. Do we boycott food products because of farm subsidies? Do we boycott electricity or natural gas because of utilities subsidization? Boycotting GM will only harm our economy. For each taxpayer, this means never getting back the money we loaned to them. For millions of American workers it means unemployment - which will be an even larger burden on our government. The debate needs to be moved from how we feel about the government's involvement and politics in general to what is best for American workers and our country.

Let's look at some facts about GM and the American auto industry*:

• GM employs nearly as many Americans as all foreign automakers combined
• GM operates more plants in the United States than all foreign automakers combined
• Toyota employs less than half as many American workers as GM
• If Detroit used as little "domestic content" as foreign automakers, about $49 billion in U.S. parts sales - and 1 million jobs - could have been moved overseas last year
• Automakers are our largest exporter and one of the biggest buyers of steel, rubber, glass, electronics and computer chips
• Nearly 1 in 10 scientists in the U.S. work for American automakers or their suppliers.

In our June 9th blog, Why Buy An American Made Vehicle, we highlighted a staggering statistic - over 3 million jobs depend on the viability of the Big Three. It's clear from these facts that a boycott of GM would not just affect the auto industry and Michigan; it would have a devastating effect on industries and families across the country.

The bottom line is that GM needs to improve their finances. The best way for them to do that is to sell more vehicles. If GM's finances improve, the government can diverge from the company, American jobs will be saved and taxpayers can get a return on their money. If a boycott is successful, not enough vehicles are sold, the company goes under, millions of people lose their jobs and taxpayers do not get their money back. Which one of these scenarios seems like a better option for our country to you?

We need to keep the focus on the American workers and the jobs across multiple industries that depend on GM and the U.S. auto industry as a whole. As credit union members, we can help by participating in Invest in America, purchasing a GM or Chrysler and financing it through a credit union. Let's do all we can to support the auto workers, and the millions of other American jobs that depend on the U.S. auto industry.

*Level Field Institute