Quote: "The retirees AND their spouses who contributed to the US automakers for years are now getting the shaft."

You are correct, Slimshady. When wages and benefits are the topic during contract negotiations, the active workers almost always "give back" a certain portion of their new wages and cost-of-living allowances which are to be put into the pension fund.

There have, no doubt, been ocassions when employers have raided the funds for purposes other than what they were intended. Keep in mind that pension funds are money which would have been paid to employees in their regular paychecks but were earmarked for pension funding.

You are correct. Retirees and their spouses paid it forward out of their own pockets.