# What happens to UAW health plans if the big 3 go bust? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 17, 2008, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-to-uaw-health-plans-if-the-big-3-go-bust/473087 "2008-11-17T04:06:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2008, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-to-uaw-health-plans-if-the-big-3-go-bust/473087/1 "2008-11-17T04:06:16Z")
If the big three tank does anything happens to the gold plated health plans of UAW workers? Do these plans depend on ongoing cash flows from auto manufacturing operations or are these plans separately funded? ---
**Author:** ![Snnipe\_70E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5a626/32.png) [@Snnipe\_70E](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snnipe_70E)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2008, 4:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-to-uaw-health-plans-if-the-big-3-go-bust/473087/2 "2008-11-17T04:44:21Z")
I do not know for a fact about UAW. But I do know about our plan. Each month the employeer is billed for their emplyee’s health plan. Then the union pays the insurance company. For the first three months of emplyement a new employee is not covered. If you loode you job for any reason your the union pays for your health care for the next three months. ---
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2008, 9:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-to-uaw-health-plans-if-the-big-3-go-bust/473087/3 "2008-11-17T09:31:25Z")
The Big Three have shifted part of the management of the employee healthcare plans over to the UAW, so presumably if one or all of the Big Three go under, there won’t be a change for at least part of the healthcare plans. There’s been some mention of the government having to step in and take over if one of the Big Three goes under, but I don’t know. It may be that the UAW’s handling the health insurance of currently employed autoworkers, while the Big Three take care of the retirees, or it might be the reverse. ---
**Author:** ![rbroome](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/838e76/32.png) [@rbroome](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rbroome)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2008, 12:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-to-uaw-health-plans-if-the-big-3-go-bust/473087/4 "2008-11-17T12:41:21Z")
> [@astro](#): > > If the big three tank does anything happens to the gold plated health plans of UAW workers? Do these plans depend on ongoing cash flows from auto manufacturing operations or are these plans separately funded? I must be missing something here. If a company goes under, it no longer can pay it’s debts-that is the definition of “going under”. The health-care for the employees are going to be like the paychecks of the employees-no more money. ? I must be missing something here. Why do you think benefits might outlive the companies? ---
**Author:** ![mks57](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b9bd4f/32.png) [@mks57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mks57)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2008, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-to-uaw-health-plans-if-the-big-3-go-bust/473087/5 "2008-11-17T13:46:20Z")
Unless there is some labor agreement to the contrary, a company can cancel health benefits for retirees. They don’t have to declare bankruptcy to do it. It seems to happen fairly often these days when a company is in financial trouble. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2008, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-to-uaw-health-plans-if-the-big-3-go-bust/473087/6 "2008-11-17T15:04:01Z")
I’ve heard some things about health care from 50 or 60 years ago. There were some talks between the UAW (or whatever they were called back then) and the automakers. The UAW wanted the government to handle health care, but the carmakers figured it would always be cheaper for them to handle it than to pay premiums (taxes) to the government. So the carmakers took on the responsibility themselves. I heard that there were talks with the Nixon administration, and that if Nixon hadn’t been forced out the government would have taken over health care for autoworkers (or perhaps would have instituted a national plan). But I recall recently hearing a recording of Nixon that makes it sound as if he’s opposed to it, as it would be ‘communism’. or something. Can anyone verify or disprove this? ---
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2008, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-to-uaw-health-plans-if-the-big-3-go-bust/473087/7 "2008-11-17T20:25:31Z")
> [@mks57](#): > > Unless there is some labor agreement to the contrary, a company can cancel health benefits for retirees. They don’t have to declare bankruptcy to do it. It seems to happen fairly often these days when a company is in financial trouble. The retirees have company provided healthcare as its part of the UAW contracts. Airlines had a similar deal until they started getting into trouble. > [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > I’ve heard some things about health care from 50 or 60 years ago. There were some talks between the UAW (or whatever they were called back then) and the automakers. The UAW wanted the government to handle health care, but the carmakers figured it would always be cheaper for them to handle it than to pay premiums (taxes) to the government. So the carmakers took on the responsibility themselves. > > I heard that there were talks with the Nixon administration, and that if Nixon hadn’t been forced out the government would have taken over health care for autoworkers (or perhaps would have instituted a national plan). But I recall recently hearing a recording of Nixon that makes it sound as if he’s opposed to it, as it would be ‘communism’. or something. > > Can anyone verify or disprove this? [NPR story about it.](http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=91303963) You’re pretty close.