I don’t know. I was so angry and frustrated after dealing with this shit for half the day that I couldn’t deal with talking to the shop any longer.
Otto, allow me to suggest the most generous interpretation I can think of that comports with the facts you describe in your OP.
The union may not prevent mechanics fom working overtime, but prevent the dealership from assigning mandatory overtime at will. A lot of dealerships have shifts that start at 6 or 7. So for what you wanted – the service rep to guarantee on the spot somone would fix your car in an hour – might mean that they had the power to make anyone or everyone work late if they decide it’s necessary. So if they can’t provide you same hour service – they promise what they are able – next day service.
But that would not necessarily mean it wouldn’t get done the same day. It might be that at the end of the day, the service reps offer up some OT jobs to the mechanics who are willing to work late. It would make sense to me that this work is split off from the interaction with you the customer, as it’s not necessarily fair for a service rep to pressure a machanic to work late with a pissed off or desperate customer staring over your shoulders.
Even if they didn’t give you a surprise early call to say your work was done early, that doesn’t mean that the mechanics weren’t offered a chance to do the work. Maybe they had holiday preparations to make.
Like I said, the most generous interpretation I can come up with…
Hey Otto
Shoot me an email - I’ve got a fantastic mechanic on Fish Hatch just inside the Beltline that runs his own shop - great prices, honest and fast. Definitely better than any dealership shop I’ve ever run across. My email’s in my profile.
P
In re-reading the OP I realize I didn’t state that this would have been for an appointment for next Wednesday, 11/29. I was not expecting to be able to drive my car to the dealership yesterday and have it fixed, although that would’ve been amazing. I called for a service appointment and was told the first opening was in a week. Then we got into the time and union contract issue.
picker, check your email.
Is there a dealership that can fix your car that has a courtesy shuttle that can take you to work and back? I had to have some dealership work done on my car recently, and that shuttle was mighty convenient.
They can, although their solution is to have a customer service rep in India convince you it’s your fault your car is broke down and then direct you to a Do-It-Yourself car repair FAQ on their website.
Dude, although I have a measure of sympathy, automotive technology isn’t what it used to be. As consumers, we demand more efficiency and everything else from the car manufacturers, and each does it their own way. My professional mechanic’s hat has long been hung up, yet I have a number of special “it only does this” tools in the roller cabinet for which I paid the Snap-On, MAC, or dealer a goodly sum. The days of servicing an automobile with a shade-tree mechanic’s tool set from Sears are a dim memory of my youth,
unless that auto is a '65 Dodge Dart with a 170 CI slant six or similar beast. 
Your beef isn’t with the mechanics-it’s with the dealership. In the few times I’ve used dealer services, they were typically open at 0700 and ran until 1700, with after hours pickup not being a problem. This covers various brands, as I’ve dropped off friends or took them home when their auto needed service.
Wow. I’m not with Otto as far as his complaint goes, but you’re a bit overboard here.
Anyone who does not live in a relative handful of urban areas, and/or in a benign climate with a limited public transportation, shares this “lifestyle problem.”
Heck, my mechanic is six miles away from my house, but it’s not on a bus line. My work is alternately 45 miles away, or 8 miles away, depending on which office I work in.
Wanna take a poll about how many folks have easy and simple public transportation between their homes and their mechanics or their homes and their places of employment? My guess is that it’s a majority of people, particularly if you filter out folks who live/work in cities like NYC.
Congratulations on being able to take a bike/bus to work. Stay on the bus, and get off the high horse.
And if the majority of people are stuck with a bad situation, does that make it OK?