This was a letter to Jim Palmer Feb 14 2004. Jim intimated that our (General Motors work force) popularity could use some improvement.  

Hi Jim

Our union and membership has rallied to every plea for help in our community. Our people have been generous to a fault. They have given hundreds of times throughout the years. We have enjoyed good wages, when we work, and we have shared those wages time and again with those in need. We have never sought accolades for our efforts. We keep a low profile about our generosity as a work force. It may be time to improve our image. Big business knows that image is everything. A popular public image could have positive repercussions for our work force in our community.  There is room for discussion on this subject, in the future.

Now Jim you know me, and you know I'm a very positive person. My communication to you in the previous paragraph was not meant to be a complaint without a suggestion for a solution. We "GM workforce” need a public relations program set in place. We have been happy with the feeling that we have done what we could and are happy with the thanks from those we helped directly. Our effect on our community is a positive one but we need to allow ourselves to be thanked for our efforts and in that way we will have a greater effect on the community because others know we are givers rather than takers. Today we are quiet friends of the community but with the proper public relations we can present a more positive image.

GM workers have always been reluctant to ask for any community support for themselves. There is very little or no sympathy for GM workers. The perception of our work force needs to be changed. There used to be a saying that there were two types of people in St. Kitts "Those that DIDN'T work at GM and those that didn't WORK at GM". Those days are behind us. We give a very fair days work.

Here is what myself, and most of my friends working at GM, feel about the people we work with.

Our production people are to be commended for their dedication to quality and their tenacity to stay committed. They have put up with numerous processing changes and extended time at their stations and still they excel. Our production people have put up with countless layoffs and notices of layoffs. Their spirit has not been broken by the onslaught of new managers with their self-propelling, kingdom building agendas. I wouldn't give up one of our production people for all the cars in Japan. After all that they have been through they still care about each other and still smile when we see them and still give charitably each and every time they are asked to help the community. These are wonderful people and they deserve our gratitude and respect.

I cannot say enough about our tradespeople. They are a group of people who not only fight for each other but also will rally to the aid of anyone in our plant or out if it, without hesitation. These people have shown us (laid off trades), such support that it brings lumps to my throat. I knew that these people were friends but you never really know how strong the friendships are until there is a call for help. Without exception, everyone who we talked to came to our aid with unquestioning support. These are good people and they have earned our respect and appreciation. Their friendship and help will never be forgotten.  

Our leaders have been steady as a rock. They gave and gave and gave and still they give. We are nearing our time to return to work. Our leaders are amazing.  For the first time ever, we have enjoyed close communication with our leaders through a layoff. They have always fought for the return of laid off people but this time the closeness of our relations has kept us in continuous communication.  The leaders we have today have shown themselves to be exceptional people with a heart. Their dedication to everyone and their caring sympathetic actions in our behalf has rallied our spirits and kept us positive and moving forward. We cannot thank these people enough.

 While I'm doling out thanks it is only fitting that I extend my appreciation to the members of the Skilled Trades Association. You people have been my inspiration. If we were doing this just for ourselves and everyone wasn't on board the spirit of the idea would have diminished. Many of us do not communicate daily, but our e-mails and phone calls show we are all watching. On every occasion, when we meet on the street, there are words of thanks and words of encouragement. Like Bob Bowman always says, "We are all in this together", smart man that Bob. We will get back to work sooner than later and when we do we will not forget. We have started a support group that will sustain throughout the years. We are maturing into something more and I'm proud to know each of you and I consider every one of you my dearest friend.

 To my comrades on the steering committee I don't even know where to start. You guys have shown yourselves to be true friends. The trades can only guess how dedicated you are to them and their needs. Your many hours of work on their behave, your dedication to their re-entry into the work force and your continuous heart felt respect you have shown everyone, is beyond reproach. Never in my life would I have guessed that something like our Skilled Trades Association would have developed such endearing friendships in such a short period.

You may feel that I’m off my clock when I state my gratitude to a few managers here. I don’t have to tell you who they are. Most of them are old school. They came up through the ranks and know what it is to feel the pinch. Generally they were gruff but stood behind their people. You knew you had to do a good job for them but you also knew they had your back. They are all but gone now or they have been beaten into submission. If they were still in a position of importance we would not be on the street today. I will miss these strong, people-caring managers.

The entire workforce of GM St. Kitts is like a close family.  I tried to explain that to Mr. Grimaldi in one of my letters to him. I don’t think he believed me because he likely has never experienced it in any of his plants. Now I’m not saying that we don’t have hurdles and situations to overcome, at times. What I’m saying is that our work force respect each other and has a strong community conscience. I think it will be to our advantage for the community to know that we are good caring friends to each other and to our community. We need to think about a PR program.
 

Papa Dez