What Happens if Pensions Disappear? A Case Analysis

Long before General Motors filed for bankruptcy protection, it closed all 10 of its facilities in Anderson, Indiana, which was devastating to the greater Anderson Community, yet today, more than ten thousand General Motors retirees reside around Anderson and the pension benefits continue to buffer the economic impact on the community. There are viable threats in the current economic climate to this stream of pension income, however. This study is an attempt to assess the long-term economic impact that a loss or significant reduction of future pensions could potentially have on the Anderson, Indiana, area

An Initial Study of the Economic Impact of General Motors Pension Benefits on the Greater Anderson, Indiana, Community

Like in many communities, transfer payments are an important income source in Anderson, Indiana. Anderson was once the home of ten General Motors plants. These plants are now closed; approximately 14,000 retirees from these plants reside in the greater Anderson, Indiana, area. This study is a first attempt to assess the long-term impact that these pensions will have on the Anderson, Indiana, area

Compliant rolling-contact architected materials for shape reconfigurability.

Architected materials can achieve impressive shape-changing capabilities according to how their microarchitecture is engineered. Here we introduce an approach for dramatically advancing such capabilities by utilizing wrapped flexure straps to guide the rolling motions of tightly packed micro-cams that constitute the material's microarchitecture. This approach enables high shape-morphing versatility and extreme ranges of deformation without accruing appreciable increases in strain energy or internal stress. Two-dimensional and three-dimensional macroscale prototypes are demonstrated, and the analytical theory necessary to design the proposed materials is provided and packaged as a software tool. An approach that combines two-photon stereolithography and scanning holographic optical tweezers is demonstrated to enable the fabrication of the proposed materials at their intended microscale

The Milky Way bar/bulge in proper motions: a 3D view from VIRAC & Gaia

© 2019 The Author(s) Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Royal Astronomical Society.We have derived absolute proper motions of the entire Galactic bulge region from VIRAC and Gaia. We present these as both integrated on-sky maps and, after isolating standard candle red clump (RC) stars, as a function of distance using RC magnitude as a proxy. These data provide a new global, 3-dimensional view of the Milky Way barred bulge kinematics. We find a gradient in the mean longitudinal proper motion, $\mu_l$, between the different sides of the bar, which is sensitive to the bar pattern speed. The split RC has distinct proper motions and is colder than other stars at similar distance. The proper motion correlation map has a quadrupole pattern in all magnitude slices showing no evidence for a separate, more axisymmetric inner bulge component. The line-of-sight integrated kinematic maps show a high central velocity dispersion surrounded by a more asymmetric dispersion profile. $\sigma_{\mu_l} / \sigma_{\mu_b}$ is smallest, $\sim1.1$, near the minor axis and reaches $\sim1.4$ near the disc plane. The integrated $$ pattern signals a superposition of bar rotation and internal streaming motion, with the near part shrinking in latitude and the far part expanding. To understand and interpret these remarkable data, we compare to a made-to-measure barred dynamical model, folding in the VIRAC selection function to construct mock maps. We find that our model of the barred bulge, with a pattern speed of 37.5 $\mathrm{km \, s^{-1} \, kpc^{-1}}$, is able to reproduce all observed features impressively well. Dynamical models like this will be key to unlocking the full potential of these data.Peer reviewe

Did The Labor Contracts Between The UAW And The Big Three Automakers Work?

In the Fall 2007, there were landmark labor contracts agreed upon between the United Autoworkers (UAW) and the Big Three Automakers—General Motors, Ford Motor Company, and Chrysler LLC.  The impetus for these truly historic labor agreements was to afford the automakers to remain competitive in the global market while labor was to be protected.  Since the passage of these labor contracts, auto sales have continually declined to record lows due to the recession in the United States.  This paper will trace the major contractual provisions of these labor agreements and also analyze how effective they were in accomplishing the stated goals for both the UAW and the Big Three automakers.  Additionally, the paper will examine the necessary changes needed in these labor contracts if the automakers are to survive in the global economy

The Labor Agreements Between UAW And The Big Three Automakers-Good Economics Or Bad Economics?

On October 10, 2007, the UAW membership ratified a landmark, 456-page labor agreement with General Motors.  Following pattern bargaining, the UAW also reached agreement with Chrysler LLC and then Ford Motor Company.  This paper will examine the major provisions of these groundbreaking labor agreements, including the creation of the Voluntary Employee Beneficiary Association (VEBA), the establishment of a two tier wage structure for newly hired workers, the job security provisions, the new wage package for hourly workers, and the shift to defined contribution plans for new hires.  The paper will also provide an economic analysis of these labor agreements to consider both if the “Big Three” automakers can remain competitive in the global market and what will be their impact on the UAW and its membership