UE Condemns General Electric's Attack
On Benefits of Salaried New Hires

SUBSTANTIAL CUTS IN benefits of General Electric salaried employees hired after Jan. 1, 2005 received unanimous condemnation from local union leaders on Dec. 1 as unfair and a potential threat to all GE employees.

Meeting at the national headquarters of the United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America (UE) in Pittsburgh, delegates representing the UE-GE local unions nationwide said the company?s action is, ?even by GE standards, a particularly egregious example of corporate arrogance.?

Affected by the benefit cuts are all union-exempt and many non-exempt salaried employees hired after Jan. 1.

GE will eliminate: all post-65 retirees? medical coverage, all company-paid medical insurance coverage for early retirees, all early retirement supplements, early retirement with a full pension at age 60, and benefits associated with permanent job loss events.

The UE-GE Conference Board said in a resolution that the company action eliminates for new hires benefits negotiated by the union over the past quarter-century and previously applied to all GE employees. "Ultimately, these cuts represent a grave threat to all GE employees, present and future, hourly and salaried alike."

The union leaders asserted the company has no legitimate economic reason for making these cuts, as the GE Pension Plan continues to be overfunded by many billions of dollars.