We faced one of the most difficult challenges in bargaining that we have in a good many years.
I don't want to downplay what Cordiano and those guys did ... but at no time in the discussions did Ford say we can't (cut further) because of this (deal) with the government.
It's a major restructuring. I don't want to downplay it.
We faced one of the most difficult challenges in bargaining that we have in a good many years, ... the Ford workers probably knew that more than anyone, given the amount of downtime they've had, given the uncertainty, the media speculation of workplace closures and layoffs.
What we did here was based on relationships and commitments by Ford to its workforce and the long-term relationship with our union and the importance they place on us.
I'm not very optimistic at this point. The big thing is the demand on jobs that they have, on outsourcing our jobs . . . to anywhere in the world that can do it cheaper.
Given the current economic context that we're in, this is not the richest-ever agreement that we have bargained, but it's a responsible bargaining, recognizing all of the issues that we face.
Right now, as the president of the union, I'm looking to moving to DaimlerChrysler.
It's going to strike a lot of Windsor families today when they get this news.
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