Workers' Benefits?

General Motors, aware that classic rock songs in its TV ads aren't going to get people to buy cars and even SUV's they don't want, is now extending its employee discount on its products to customers. Wow, what a neat idea. You get a employee discount that will lessen the cost of a silly ol' Buick LaCrosse or a boring ol' Chevrolet Malibu Maxx even if you don't work for GM. Well, if you don't, guess what - 25,000 people are going to join you! That's right, General Motors has announced plans to lay off twenty-five thousand assembly line workers in the U.S. and Canada - 22 percent of its North American manufacturing workforce - to save money and become more competitive. What a coup - GM shortchanges its workers and passes the savings on to you, the clueless consumer. As for the Chevrolet or Pontiac assembly line worker in your neighborhood, you'll probably be seeing him at your local Wal-Mart applying for a job - which means he could become your coworker! Ask the laid-off Oldsmobile assembly line worker about GM's woes - he's the guy you're managing in the one-hour photo department!

And does he still resent working for you, a guy young enough to be his son?