The auto industry has made its case and Congress has a plan. Loans of up to $15 billion to GM and Chrysler. A substantial Government ownership stake and a direct role in the industry’s restructuring. There’s talk of a car Czar. But what’s in it for workers?

On GRITtv we speak to Brian Schneck President of UAW Local 259, Marissa Colon-Margolies a contributor to The Nation Magazine, Frank Hammer Former President and Chairman of UAW Local 909, James Theisen a truck driver for Chrysler, Wendy Thompson former president of UAW Local 235, and Tony Browning a member of Local 1700 on what the proposed plan will mean for workers and American manufacturing.

The plan will give the companies enough cash to meet obligations for the next few months, during which time they are expected to draft a long-term management plan. But is it enough?

According to Margolies, the money will only plug holes. It’s a wake up call but only a first step. If the bridge loan is not part of a larger economic recovery project, it will be a bridge to nowhere. The cost of doing nothing? Thiesen says that if the auto industry goes under many truck drivers will lose their jobs. That’s in addition to the more than 3 million auto industry jobs at risk.