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James R. Healey reports that General Motors has fired 15 people who either were incompetent or irresponsible in their actions involving fatally flawed ignition switches that are linked to 13 deaths in crashes where airbags failed to inflate. "A disproportionate number of those were in senior roles or executives," said GM CEO Mary Barra. Two high-ranking engineers previously put on paid leave were among them, said Barra adding that five more employees "one level removed" were disciplined in unspecified ways because they "simply didn't take action."
A far back as 2002, General Motors engineers starting calling it the "switch from hell" but it would take a dozen years, more than 50 crashes and at least 13 deaths for the automaker to recall the ignition switch, used in millions of small cars. GM's own internal investigation never explains how a lone engineer in a global automaker could approve a less expensive part that failed to meet GM standards. Nor does it illuminate why the same engineer could substitute an improved design without changing the part number, a move critics cite as evidence of a cover-up. After the first cars with the switch went on sale, GM heard complaints from customers, employees and dealers. But "group after group and committee after committee within GM that reviewed the issue failed to take action or acted too slowly," the report said. A unique series of mistakes was made," said Barra. And the problem was misunderstood to be one of owner satisfaction and not safety. GM engineers didn't understand that when the switches failed, they cut power to the airbags.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by VLM on Sunday June 08 2014, @06:46PM
Usually corporate bloodlettings like this never tell the truth. Some exec is leaving to spend time with his family or whatever other BS. So the specific scapegoats almost certainly have little if anything to do with the switch or at least don't have any more blame than a zillion other people. Because most corporations are horribly corrupt political organizations.
So given that postulate, I wonder what they did to get fired? Hopefully not boring stuff like race/sex/religion. I'm hoping for something more interesting. Scandalous. Probably nothing related to the switches, thats probably the only thing you can rule out.
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday June 08 2014, @06:50PM
> So given that postulate, I wonder what they did to get fired?
Probably nothing more than being in wrong place at the wrong time when looking for a scapegoat.
The problem is almost certainly cultural, more incentive to shutup and go along to keep along than to make a fuss and risk a career. 99.9% of the time it pay not to rock the boat. This is the 0.1% when it didn't pay.
(Score: 4, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday June 08 2014, @08:08PM
The CEO and the VP of Manufacturing et al justify their multi-$million compensations by indicating that the whole operation would grind to a halt without them in place to make sure everything is going smoothly.
When this sort of thing happens, however, there is a glass ceiling WRT responsibility.
The American economic/industrial system is a complete mess.
The same goes for the so-called justice system.
-- gewg_
(Score: 2, Interesting) by Ethanol-fueled on Sunday June 08 2014, @10:12PM
Here's a true corporate horror-story I have experienced, with some of the details changed to protect the guilty:
ElectroCorp makes toys that cost tens of thousands of dollars each. One by one, though, they are returned defective and the company determines that a manufacturing defect in one faulty piece renders the entire gadget (even the housing!) unusable when that part fails. When the company should have fessed up and instituted a recall (expensive but still saving many of the gadgets with the easy replacement of that one piece), it instead denied the problem. What the company did was offer the customer the option to pay to replace the faulty piece as a "recommended upgrade", and when the customer declined, the part was still replaced on the sly for every RMA that came in. The company actually still does that for two separate parts on the system.
As the saying goes, "Those who enjoy sausage are best left not knowing how it's made."
(Score: 2) by Hairyfeet on Monday June 09 2014, @12:38PM
The bitch is that "a car that lasts 10 years like it should" really don't exist as they ALL have serious problems thanks to asshole accountants putting a dollar sign on every screw and bolt. Ford? Their overdrives fail A LOT, in fact I wouldn't be surprised to find out the reason they got rid of the ranger was how many trannys they were replacing. GMC? Ignition, not just this one, the ones they had in the big SUVs and trucks likewise suck only they tend to stick and make it harder to turn as the vehicles age. Dodge? Cooling systems and overdrives, depending on model they can spend more time in the shop than they do on the road. Same goes for most of the imports, its all ruled by accountants instead of engineers so all that matters is how many sheckles they can squeeze off the BOM.
ACs are never seen so don't bother. Always ready to show SJWs for the racists they are.
(Score: 2) by mcgrew on Monday June 09 2014, @03:44PM
The bitch is that "a car that lasts 10 years like it should" really don't exist
Oh, really? My 2002 Concorde just bit the dust, twelve years old. And the engine's failure was my own fault. I replaced it with a 2004 Grand Am, and it runs fine. I expect to still be driving it five years from now. And I see REALLY old classic cars all the time, cars even older than me and I don't work any more (retired).
Forty years ago you would have been correct, back then a five year old car was rusted out, burning oil, leaking water, and the interior was shot. Today's cars are far better built.
mcgrewbooks.com mcgrew.info nooze.org
(Score: 2) by Rune of Doom on Monday June 09 2014, @03:34AM
"huge mess" is an understatement. What it is, is a corrupt and non-functional sytem. "Gilding and lies slapped over dry rot."
(Score: 2) by Rune of Doom on Monday June 09 2014, @03:37AM
Based off personal experience, they probably rubbed some of their direct management the wrong way, or failed to kiss enough ass. Probably not in any way directly related to this debacle (for fear that they might have some record of their complaints) but given the disaster that is typical US corporate "organization" and "management" I wouldn't be surprised to find out that in the next week one (or more) of these sacrificial goats has solid proof that they tried to blow the whistle internally and were slapped down.
(Score: 2) by mcgrew on Monday June 09 2014, @03:28PM
That makes no sense and contradicts what TFA says.
The two she named sure sound like the real culprits to me. Why would you NOT fire an incompetent engineer?
mcgrewbooks.com mcgrew.info nooze.org