Does Nissan support LGBT LEAF owners?

[Jimmydreams]

I'm a journalist, not an HR person so maybe someone who knows the HR world can chime in with more. The issues for the companies as I understand them:


- On average, costs (I believe just medical) for partners have been over five times as high as costs for 'spouses'. For whatever reason partners require more medical aid than married spouses, how much of this is intentional gaming of the system and how much is something else I have no idea.

Because this is such utter nonsense, it took me all of 5 seconds to dispute it:

"A 2000 Hewitt Associates survey confirmed that coverage for domestic partners is no more expensive than coverage for spouses or other dependents, despite early concerns about the health needs of same-sex partners relative to other dependents."

http://www.hrc.org/issues/workplace/benefits/domestic_partner_benefit_costs.htm

I would debunk the rest of your 'journalistic' opinion with more facts, but I have an EV expo to go to.

 

[Randmac]

I have no doubt SkiTundra speaks the truth.

It would seem the solution is to either expand the definition of marriage to include gays or get some kind of legal union laws implemented.

+1

 

[thankyouOB]

I have no doubt SkiTundra speaks the truth.

It would seem the solution is to either expand the definition of marriage to include gays or get some kind of legal union laws implemented.

+1

You might want to read these two a bit more carefully. neither is supportive of equal rights.

 

[SanDust]

A bit of behind the scenes scoop on this bill. Without this bill being passed one large employer would have left TN and another said they would have to consider it. This also raised concerns about any new companies choosing to move to TN. The issue is the extent to which local legislation would require companies to offer highly customized health and benefit plans for employees in different geographic or business areas. The company who said that would have to consider leaving already offers one of the best 'partner benefit' plans in the nation but that plan would not have met a local ordinance being considered where their plant is located. The cost of idling the plant and laying off workers was less than the cost of providing a customized health and benefit plan. And, less than 1% of this companies employees in TN take advantage of the current partner benefit plan and none would have benefited from the customized plan. This company is a major supplier to Nissan.

I find this rather comical. I can see the issue but you need to wake up and smell the coffee -- companies located in different states and different countries already comply with many different requirements.

Of course if people decide to boycott the Leaf based on this law then lots of companies may leave Tennessee. I have a huge problem buying products made in states that are so hell bent on discriminating against gays and lesbians. I dunno. Maybe a national boycott against all vehicles made in Tennessee is the wake-up call politicians in Tennessee need.

 

[LTLFTcomposite]

I have no doubt SkiTundra speaks the truth. People see big companies as a bottomless well of gimmie-gimmie-gimmie, without any regard to the notion that they have to produce a product that has value in the market and make a profit to succeed. Compliance costs are through the roof.

Remember General Motors went bankrupt because they became a health care charity that was building cars on the side.

I call BS on this last sentence. And the first graf is nasty, refutable, right-wing propaganda, as well.

Providing your workers with health care as a negotiated benefit to ensure their well-being, provide a stable work force and share some of the company success is NOT CHARITY. These were negotiated benefits with one of the largest corporations in the world and when they became less profitable the work force renegotiated down its wages and benefits.

Please be so kind as to take these gooper TPs to some other place.

The last sentence is anything but BS. Health care costs were what sunk GM, under the burden of union contract obligations and political back scratching that built up over many years. Killing the EV1 had nothing to do with it.

Health care in the US is on an unsustainable course. You do get that, don't you?

 

[thankyouOB]

I worked on healthcare policy for almost a decade and continue to follow the issue very closely.
on GM, you ignore the facts about negotiated contracts, about union givebacks, about how it is necessary to maintain a work force.
the issue of the cost of medical care is not simple, but all other first-world countries have universal health care and they do it at about half to two thirds of our cost.
They dont put the blame on their labor force. They dont have mostly unbridled insurance companies or drug advertising on TV, or no bulk-buying of pharmaceuticals.
your right-wing ideology is showing.

who said anything about the EV1????????

 

[Fabio]

I completely agree with you on that, but the solution is not more free-market Health Care.
How comes that the Health Care costs are much lower (and the result much better) in good old Europe where there is universal health care (and I speak with first hand knowledge)?
Just because Fox keeps telling you the opposite (same goes for climate change), it doesn't make it the truth.

Health care in the US is on an unsustainable course. You do get that, don't you?

 

[lzendle]

There are two issues:
1) Should employers provide health insurance for their workers and how comprehensive should it be?
2) If an employer provides health insurance benefits for their workers, it should provide them equally to all employees PERIOD.

Providing health insurance to LGBT employees is NO more expensive than providing it to "straight" employees. In fact, several studies have shown that they are probably less. (LGBT people have fewer pregnancies and children.)

The issue of "fraud" is easily handled. In states that allow same-sex marriage or domestic partnerships a copy of the certificate should be provided by ALL employees. In states that do not, a signed and notarized document can be signed by the couple with specific reasonable criteria (only one domestic partner at a time, must live together for at least one year, one year between domestic partners, etc.)

Finally, although the Tennessee Chamber of Commerce was an initial supporter, this bill was written and promoted by the radical Christian right. Once again, people forget that we do not live in a theocracy. If they want to do so, I suggest they move to Iran or to the Vatican!

 

[AndyH]

I worked on healthcare policy for almost a decade and continue to follow the issue very closely.
on GM, you ignore the facts about negotiated contracts, about union givebacks, about how it is necessary to maintain a work force.
the issue of the cost of medical care is not simple, but all other first-world countries have universal health care and they do it at about half to two thirds of our cost.
They dont put the blame on their labor force. They dont have mostly unbridled insurance companies or drug advertising on TV, or no bulk-buying of pharmaceuticals.
your right-wing ideology is showing.

who said anything about the EV1????????

Thank you thankyou!

I absolutely cannot speak to the higher-level policy work of which you speak, but what you write matches very well with my experience growing up in a GM family. I grew to hate unions after watching the games the UAW played with both the employees and the company. It wasn't until later in life that I understood GM's side of the 'fun'.

Thank you for your ability to see beyond sound bites and propaganda.