UAW Leader Says South Korea Steals U.S. Jobs

The United Auto Workers (UAW) President Ron Gettelfinger spoke to about 1,000 union activists on Feb 3: South Korea called threat (Justin Hyde, Detroit Free Press, Feb 4). 

The speech touched on other issues including the upcoming election,the stimulus package, and a recent agreement with the auto companies, but he got in a dig at Korea:

UAW President Ron Gettelfinger accused South Korea on Sunday of stealing U.S. jobs, warning that the U.S. economy would not cure itself unless the nation rebuilds its manufacturing base....

...Gettelfinger said the Korean market was among the most closed in the world.

While Korean automakers sold nearly 773,000 vehicles in the United States last year, U.S. automakers sold fewer than 9,000 of the 1.2 million cars and trucks bought in South Korea.

The trade pact would end the 25% tariff on imported pickups , something Ford Motor Co. and Chrysler LLC said could lead to foreign automakers using South Korea as an export base targeting Detroit's most profitable vehicles.

"That's not free trade, and that's not fair trade," Gettelfinger said. "That is the theft of American jobs."...