Big Three ProCon.org

ProCon.org is an independent, nonpartisan, 501(c)(3) nonprofit public charity

Video introduction to ProCon.org and the pros and cons of controversial topics

Should the Big Three car manufacturers be bailed out by the US government?

This site presents in a simple, nonpartisan pro-con format, responses to the core question "Should the Big Three car manufacturers be bailed out by the US government?" along with related research.

ARCHIVED WEBSITE: No new data posted since May 15, 2009. On May 15, 2009 we archived this site - meaning we will (usually) no longer make any updates to it. The site was archived because on Dec. 19, 2008 President Bush offered the Big Three automakers federal loans and our core question became moot. We continued to present relevant historical and contextual information, and we completed our research efforts in Apr. 2009.

Please note that the site will remain publicly accessible so that our readers can continue to benefit from the information it provides.

For a list of all our websites, please visit www.procon.org.

Chart comparing Big Three auto makers to Toyota and Honda
Compares sales, employees, costs, CEO compensation, and 15+ more stats in this 144-point chart.
Pros and Cons of "Should the Big Three car manufacturers be bailed out by the US government?"
Read statements from Obama, Romney, Krugman, Wagoner, and other VIPs.
Contracts with United Auto Workers (UAW) and Others

See the actual agreements the Big Three have with unions, employees and others.
Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Explained
Chapter 11 bankruptcy laws and rules detailed here.
Sources and Notes

I. Chart comparing Big Three auto makers to Toyota and Honda

		A.	B.	C.	D.	E.	F.
		GM	Ford	Chrysler	Big 3 Total	Toyota	Honda
1.	US Market Share as of: - Oct. 2008 1	19.9%	15.3%	11.3%	46.5%	18.1%	10.3%
1.	- Dec. 2007 2	23.4%	15.6%	12.6%	51.6%	15.9%	9.4%
2.	Global Sales: - 2008 Year to Date 3	$118.8 billion	$117.1 billion	?	?	$143.9 billion	$66.7 billion
2.	- 2007 total 4	$181.12 billion	$172.45 billion	?	?	$202.86 billion	$94.11 billion
3.	Global Cars Sold: - through Sep. 2008 5	6.63 million	?	1.18 million	?	8.91 million	?
3.	- 2007 total 6	9.37 million	6.55 million	2.68 million	18 million	8.52 million	3.65 million
4.	Employees: - Direct (US) 7	96,000	80,000	63,480	242,000	36,632	25,000
	- Indirect (US) 8	340,000	?	?	2.5-3 million	?	?
	- Direct (Global)9	266,000	244,000	?	?	316,121	178,960
5.	Revenue per Employee 10	$680,910	$1,837,925	$500,217	---	$830,043	$670,697
6.	Average Wage per Hour 2006 (US) 11	$39.68	$28.88	$29.15	$32.57	$24	$24
	Average Value of Benefits per Hour 2006 (US) 11	$33.58	$41.63	$46.71	$40.64	$24	$24
	Average Hourly Compensation 2006 (US Wage and Benefits)11	$73.26	$70.51	$75.86	$73.21	$48	$48
7.	Union Employees? 12	Yes	Yes	Yes	--	No	No
8.	Annual Union Dues per Employee13	$952.32	$693.12	$699.60	$781.68	nonunion	nonunion
9.	# of Legacy Employees 14	see footnote	see footnote	see footnote	see footnote	see footnote	see footnote
10.	Annual Cost of Legacy Employees 15	$6 billion	see footnote	see footnote	see footnote	see footnote	see footnote
11.	CEO (since) 16	Rick Wagoner (2000)	Allan Mulally (2006)	Robert Nardelli (2007)	---	Katsuaki Watanabe (2005)	Takeo Fukui (2003)
12.	CEO 2007 Compensation 17	$14.4 million	$21.7 million	$1 salary; full comp. not disclosed	---	$900,000	see footnote
13.	# of Plants (US) 18	75	36	23	134	8	4
14.	# of Brands (US)19	8	5	3	16	3	2
15.	Income Before Tax 2007 20	-$5.73 billion	-$3.75 billion	?	?	$21.96 billion	$7.60 billion
16.	Federal Income Taxes Paid/Refunds Received in 2007 21	$37.16 billion	-$1.29 billion	?	?	$7.61 billion	$2.41 billion
17.	Net Profit or Loss 2007 22	-$38.73 billion	-$2.7 billion	?	?	$13.93 billion	?
18.	Links to 2007 Annual Reports 23	GM Report 5.3 MB	Ford Report 6.2 MB	Daimler Report 3.7 MB	--	Toyota Report 3.3 MB	Honda Report 5.7 MB
19.	Links to SEC Filings: - Last Quarterly Report (filing period) 24	10-Q (9/30/08) 1.1 MB	10-Q (9/30/08) 516 KB	Daimler 6-K (10/08) 1.2 MB	--	6-K (10/08) 77 KB	6-K (10/08) 80 KB
19.	- 2007 Annual Report (filing period) 25	10-K (12/31/07) 2.1 MB	10-K (12/31/07) (960 KB)	Daimler 20-F (12/31/07) 4.3 MB	--	20-F (3/31/08) (4.2 MB)	20-F (3/31/08) (488 KB)
		GM	Ford	Chrysler	Big 3 Total	Toyota	Honda
		A.	B.	C.	D.	E.	F.

See Sources and Notes for data in this chart

ProCon.org Notices (archived after 30 days)

6/13/2013 – Critical Thinking Explained – What is critical thinking, and why is it so important? This episode of ProCon.org's Critical Thinking Video Series explores the ways critical thinking cuts through confusion, encourages citizen involvement, and leads to a stronger democracy.

6/7/2013 – New study shows students who discuss/debate controversial issues get higher NAEP test scores – See this and other studies showing the importance of teaching controversial issues to stimulate critical thinking, education, and informed citizenship.

Archived Notices (archived after 30 days)

Last updated on 6/13/2013 2:31:23 PM PST

Visit the ProCon.org community on: