UAW says "We are going to strike like its 1958"

The UAW announced today that it has called a national strike against GM -- the first such action in decades.

Add this to the huge problems facing GM. If you are looking for a definition of huge, try this. GM has almost 340,000 retirees and surviving spouses and about $51 billion in unfunded retiree health costs -- which is about two and a half times GM's current market cap of just under $20 billion.

These health care costs are one of the reasons GM remains non-competitive in the showroom. Every car GM produces costs about $1500 more than a similar Japanese model due to employee health care costs. GM's problems are bound to get worse before they get better.

It's too bad it's not 1958. GM would be selling lots of Impalas like the sweet one shown above. And, national labor strikes would be a relevant and effective negotiating tool. The UAW says the strike is not about retiree health benefits but about job security for current employees. With a strike fund of $800 million, the UAW says that it has the financial capacity to strike for a year -- assuming workers are paid $200 a week. Too bad its not 1958. Back then, $200 was a lot of money.