DETROIT -- Oscar Gray achieved the good life during 28 years of hard work at Delphi Corp. -- a six-figure income, a nice home in Holly and two vehicles.
But as Michigan's auto industry tanked in recent years, the forklift operator lost huge amounts of overtime pay and gradually sank into financial ruin. Saddled with $469,000 in debt, he declared bankruptcy last month.
Gray isn't alone. Once the symbol of blue-collar prosperity, Michigan autoworkers are going bankrupt in alarming numbers as vehicle production declines and overtime pay dwindles.
The United Auto Workers' legal department has handled the bankruptcies of nearly 10,000 of its members, retirees and their families in Michigan since 2002, according to Detroit News research of court records. UAW lawyers estimate that Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 filings in Michigan have been growing at a 10 percent annual clip in recent years.
The bankruptcies show that many Michigan autoworkers are failing to scale back their lifestyles in the face of massive changes slamming the state's bread-and-butter industry.
Gray didn't lose his job. His health isn't failing, and he is not going through a divorce -- the typical reasons many declare bankruptcy.
Gray has been losing overtime. His gross pay was cut $16,000 one year, sliding to $87,000, and may dip again because Delphi is considering a Chapter 11 filing.
"You count on something your whole life and then it gets jerked around," Gray said.
While layoffs have soared, it's often autoworkers still on the job who are drowning in debt.
Loss of overtime is one of the top reasons autoworkers have sought bankruptcy protection the past four years, say attorneys for UAW Legal Service Plan. The plan provides free legal aid to UAW members, retirees and immediate family members.
The typical autoworker in Michigan has lost five hours of overtime per week since 1997 -- which means an average annual loss of $10,000 per worker, according to the Michigan Department of Labor & Economic Growth. For workers in the hardest-hit plants, the loss of income can be far greater.
Overtime at major factories, such as Ford Motor Co.'s Wayne and Wixom assembly plants and General Motors Corp.'s Pontiac East plant, has dropped sharply or been eliminated. In years past, workers at those plants regularly clocked significant overtime.
In addition to a drop in overtime pay, annual cash bonuses paid by Detroit automakers to factory workers have declined in recent years as profits have decreased or disappeared. At Ford, where bonuses averaged $6,700 as recently as 2000, profit-sharing payouts averaged $600 for 2004...
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