Sherwood Egbert Arrested

[StudeMichael]

Oh the dark days of Studebaker

[BobPalma]

Hey, I think SDCer Don Galeziewski is still using that very typewriter in his office of Insurance Benefits Administration at the South Bend Police Dept! BP

[SN-60]

In a situation like this one, whoever files the complaint first appears to be the victim. Egbert, who would be characterized in history as a 'class act', probably never even thought of filing at the
time of this event. As He was management and therefore a non-union employee, the strikers should have allowed Him to pass through their lines. Jeering?-of course! But no further.

[clonelark]

Wasn't a Richards mentioned in the Lamberti papers?

[556063]

Most of the 6000 people put out on the snowy, cold street two years later likely wished this whole thing never happened. Then, there came a guy named Byers Burlingame..........

[comatus]

"George, that soldier you slapped did more to win the war than any other private."
A warning that all glory is fleeting.

[StudeMichael]

Egbert was all about building cars! A picket line was not in his interest.

[BobPalma]

Egbert was all about building cars! A picket line was not in his interest.

Amen to that, Michael.

'No doubt the 1962 model year would have been a 100,000-unit year had they not gone on strike and caused all that trouble.

In less than a full year, Egbert had gotten the ball rolling better than anyone could have hoped for with:

1. The new Gran Turismo Hawk

2. The Avanti project coming along well

3. Indianapolis 500 Pace Car honors and the resultant priceless, good publicity.

4. A pleasant Lark redesign and serious freshening that had been well-accepted

5. An up-to-the-minute bucket seat, 4-speed model in the Daytona series...

...and yet, the UAW geniuses just couldn't be content suffering from whatever horrendous grievance with which Egbert was burdoning them, vis-a-vis the silly clean-up time issue, or whatever it was.

...He who laughs last, of course, 'cause less than 24 months later, the corporation threw in the towel and threw most of them on the street, per Kevin's Post #5!

I always felt sorry for what I'm sure were many UAW members who appreciated Egbert's efforts and would have worked with him, given a chance. 'Too bad they were shouted down by those having shorter attention spans.

Fast-forward 50 years:The more things change, the more they stay the same. BP

[JBOYLE]

Bob...
Amen to that.

[SN-60]

Once a union grievance is filed, it must run it's course. Whether the grievance is settled 'in house' or is arbitrated, it is an effective process that generally works. As most of You fellow Studebaker enthusiasts know,
strikes usually occur when a current contract is ending, and during negotiations management insists on what the union feels are too many concessions in the proposed contract. Studebaker had been in business in South Bend
for 111 years, and no matter how bad things were looking, I doubt if anyone expected the auto division to be shut down for good. The union strike did not kill the auto division. Mistakes Studebaker leadership made many
years prior to this strike are what led to the inevitable closure of the auto division.----Really too bad for everyone involved---but their cars and trucks were sure neat!

[JBOYLE]

The auto division was losing money for a variety of reasons, certainly not all to do with Union issues. At any rate, its future had been a subject for public speculation for years.
(The other day I was reading a period magazine road test on a Lark which mentioned the question of whether Studebaker would survive...so it was hardly a secrret).
But still, you'd think someone in the union would have realized that a strike sure wasn't going to help the firm survive.

[556063]

Since there are so many new folks on the Forum today, I often wonder how many have seen the old PBS documentary "Studebaker - Less Than They Promised" from about 1984. In my opinion, that show and it's focus on The Bokon family really shows the reality of what people were thinking 10-20 years after the closing. 10-20 years after the closing was when I got to know many of the now departed former employees that told me stories from their first hand perspective. I know there are some active on the forum that had closer personal experience. But, here's the take I formed from my discussions with former employees "back in the day". This is not in their actual words, but it's my interpretation of them.

Some of the workers had the impression Studebaker always going to be there. It had survived the depression and all the other turmoils of the time. Some Studebaker employees in the 50's and 60's couldn't qualify for a mortgage with their positions at Studebaker unless they had other income sources in their families, but that was due to overcautious bankers, not Studebaker's future prospects.

Just like so many down to earth employees today, they were more focused getting through their days and weeks and everyday living than board meetings and corporate strategy. By the late 50's, many people from outside Studebaker Families entering the workforce avoided Studebaker because of the layoffs and other red flags. But, if you had been there a long time, you had earned your place, and if your Dad worked there, you were already a member of the group. And, there was no better place to work in the area. Things would work out. They always had before. And you, your father, and in some cases his father had put in blood, sweat and tears to build this place. No one would dare take that away from you.

I've posted a long time ago about my Father's days at Roth Plating (circa 1960). A country boy, my Dad learned quickly the first day about Union work rules and the Studebaker "Entitlement Mentality". On the first day, he tried to think ahead and started loading a Studebaker company truck with finished product after it had dropped off a load of raw castings. The driver scolded him, explaining he didn't pick up. He just delivered. If he needed a pickup, he would have to call the plant and ask for a separate truck and driver to do the pick up. According to the rules, he had to return to the plant empty and sit and wait for his next delivery.

People often don't know what they've got until it's gone. And, while it's being taken away from them, they are too busy with everyday life to realize or notice it's slipping away.

Having gone through the loss of an employer and the slippage over a period of time of the security I felt, I must say it's human nature to try and make the best of a job while you still have it, even if bells and alarms are going off around you. If you focus on the negatives, you can't function. Especially if your other options are less attractive than the one you are trying to hold on to.

[8E45E]

The auto division was losing money for a variety of reasons, certainly not all to do with Union issues. At any rate, its future had been a subject for public speculation for years.
(The other day I was reading a period magazine road test on a Lark which mentioned the question of whether Studebaker would survive...so it was hardly a secrret).
But still, you'd think someone in the union would have realized that a strike sure wasn't going to help the firm survive.

As I stated here> http://forum.studebakerdriversclub.c...ighlight=union , one would wonder why Union Local #5 would spend so much $$ on a spanking-new union hall just to put its major employer out of business and effectively, lose funding for it.

Craig

[SN-60]

556063's text is an excellent read. And Local #5's new union hall is another example of looking ahead towards a brighter future---thinking positive!

[showbizkid]

Unions can be both a volatile and a political topic. Please don't take this topic into that territory,.