"T.J." wrote in message
...
GOOD FOR GM!!!!!

They should take deadbeat's bonuses away from them if they arent current
on
their child support!!!!

TJ
You know what TJ your a dick head.....I don't know what your opinion is on
deadbeat, but some people are working and doing all that they can do to pay
support and keep food on the table and pay bills for themselves. It is easy
to get behind in childsupport. Don't you ever send me another email to my
account. Obiviously you have no idea how it is to be down on your luck and
have nothing.
At least my husband is making an attempt, even as small as it is. He is
trying! My uncle died owing his grown children that have children $70,000.
And another person that I know owes his grow children more than $150,00.
So don't even f**kin talk to me about deadbeat.
Angel
"Dave" Dave@freedoms-door wrote in message
...
It has not been easy always being a buy American car kind of guy. But
this
pushes it over the top for me. I will never own another GM product.

Me either and I love camaro's!

"Angel" wrote in message
...
I think that this is going way to far, Corporations should keep their
noses
to them selves. I mean what the hell are NCP supposed to do live in a
freaking box. Regardless if the are paying on time or have arrears. I
am
glad that my husband doesn't work for GM. We don't have enough money
now.
Angel


Published October 17, 2003
Child support cuts GM bonuses
Many workers angry as they weren't past due


By John Schneider
Lansing State Journal


Thousands of GM employees who pay child support in Michigan and other
states
found their $3,000 bonuses cut by $900 or withheld entirely this week.

Ingham County Friend of the Court Donald Rei-sig called it a
"unilateral
and
premature seizure" by General Motors Corp.

But GM officials say federal law, and the time constraints of the
labor
contract employees recently ratified - which included the bonuses -
forced
them to err on the side of excess.

About two-thirds of the money taken from 572 GM workers in Ingham
County
alone - with the blessing of the state Office of Child Support - came
from
people who are current in their payment or no longer under financial
obligation at all.

"This has to be illegal," said Allen McDaniel, a material handler at
the
Lansing Car Assembly plant, who completed his support obligations a
year
ago.

His bonus check was $900 short: "How can you take money from somebody
just
because he might owe something?"

McDaniel said GM officials assured him he would get his money
eventually.

Since Tuesday, when GM employees learned about the 50 percent
shortages -
about $900 in most cases - the Ingham Friend of the Court office has
been
swamped by calls from outraged clients.

"People are as irate as hell," said Reisig.

The bonuses - lump-sum wage increases established in the labor
contract
ratified Oct. 6 - started out at $3,000. Most employees took home
about
$1,800 after taxes.

In the case of employees in Michigan with "active child or spousal
support
deductions," GM held half the $1,800, as specified by Michigan law.

That varies from state to state. In Ohio, for example, GM withheld the
entire amount.

Federal law requires GM to help county and state officials enforce
child-support orders through payroll deductions and diverting lump-sum
payments to cover arrears.

But in the cases of the bonuses distributed this week, GM (including
Saturn), took 50 percent from all Michigan employees with active
support
deduction orders, regardless of whether they were behind in their
payments.

GM spokesman Tom Wickham acknowledged that it was an "unfortunate
situation." But the terms of the new contract between GM and the
United
Auto
Workers forced GM payroll officials to use a broad net, he said.

Bonuses for child-support payers typically are handled like this:

GM, anticipating the distribution of bonus checks, asks county or
state
officials to identify support payers behind in their obligations. GM
uses
that information to determine which bonuses get diverted.

"Normally, we have 45 days to do this," Wickham said. "In this case,
the
contract was ratified Oct. 6, and we were contractually obligated to
distribute the bonuses this week."

Given that, Wickham said, GM officials decided to deduct 50 percent
from
the
bonuses of all employees with support orders.

As for why employees no longer under court orders got caught in the
net,
Wickham said, "We need to update our lists."

GM will start releasing the money as it gets those updated lists,
Wickham
said. He declined to say when that will happen.

Maureen Sorbet, spokeswoman for the state Family Independence Agency,
said
GM's action was proper.

"We believe GM was honoring the language and intent of the agreement
between
the employer and the Office of Child Support," Sorbet said.

Today that office will supply GM with a list of support payers who
aren't
behind in their payments, she said.

"For anybody not in arrears, the money will be released," Sorbet said.
"As
for how quickly, you'll have to check with GM."

On Thursday, in a blistering letter to GM, Reisig wrote: "Your payroll
department withheld ... bonus payments, without regard to whether or
not
any
support arrearage was owed."

The letter continued: "Your action of prematurely seizing these funds
and
holding them, even for a relatively short period of time, does a
disservice
to your many employees, who both give to you their services, and who
diligently pay their child support on behalf of their children."

Of the 572 GM employees in Ing-ham County who received half their
bonuses,
191 are behind in their support payments.

"It sucks," said Doug Grace of Lansing, an Assembly plant worker who
came
up
$900 short. "I go out of my way to make sure I don't fall behind."

Contact John Schneider at 377-1175 or .