["Business unionism"-the term used to describe the extremes…]

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"Business unionism"-the term used to describe the extremes of class collaboration reached by US union leaders-took on a new layer of meaning last week.

United Auto Workers union leader Douglas Fraser became a director of the crisis-ridden Chrysler Corporation.

Fraser is supposedly on the board to represent the interests of his 150,000 members in Chrysler who, as a result of the latest plans to save the Corporation from bankruptcy, are expected to own 15% of the shares by 1984.

But he has already struck up a close personal friendship with Chrysler boss Lee lacocca, and his readiness to hand over some $200 million in members' wage entitlements and $200 million in union pension funds to save America's third largest producer augurs badly for UAW members in the next period Indeed Chrysler is far from out of the crisis brought on by the rocketing price of oil, the and Carter Economic crisis policies.

The elaborate scheme to provide $1.5 billion in federal cash to bail out the flagging firm eventually cleared through the US Congress-only to be thrown intr objections from .. ungruntled and weary baukers.

Headed by the French Credit Lyonnais, a group of banks have refused to accept the terms of the federal deal, which threatens to saddle them with a bundle of unwanted Chrysler shares in 1983, in place of the cash settlement which they would prefer.

Their objections could still scuttle the whole leaking ship.

Meanwhile, with Fraser beside laccoca at the helm, the firm continues to throw workers overboard in the struggle to stay afloat: the latest closures to be announced include a truck assembly plant in Missouri, an engine plant in Canada and Chrysler's main large-car producing plant.

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