Ford, Visteon, UAW Unite For Worker Support Program

A new initiative announced last week by Ford Motor Co., Visteon Corp., and the United Auto Workers (UAW) may set the tone for others to follow in creating a labor-management partnership. Called Family Service and Learning Center (FSLC), the partnership is designed to meet the needs of individuals, families, and retirees of those corporations. An outgrowth of last year's contract negotiations, FSLC will provide 13 new state-of-the-art centers in the Detroit, Cleveland, Louisville, and Kansas City areas that will provide a variety of services, including 24-hour child care. Fifteen other communities with high concentrations of Ford and Visteon employees will receive myriad FLSC services and programs such as adult- and family-education classes and volunteer support networks. "Enlightened corporations are beginning to understand that social issues are business issues," says Ford chairman William Ford Jr. "They realize they can no longer separate themselves from what is going on around them. Ultimately, business can only be as successful as the communities, and the world, that they exist in."