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SALT LAKE CITY -- Last week, troubled automakers General Motors and Chrysler decided to drop 1,900 dealers by the end of 2010. Now, affected Utah dealers are charting their next moves. The Barber Brothers of Utah own a franchise of each and say they are not going anywhere.
The Barber brothers have sold General Motors and Chrysler brands for nearly three decades in Spanish Fork, Orem and Morgan. On Tuesday, they joined nearly 800 other affected Chrysler dealers to file a motion in U.S. Bankruptcy Court to block the dealer cuts.
They say they owe it to their workers. "That's our primary focus, not necessarily to fight Chrysler, it's to protect the jobs of our employees," said Sam Barber.
Affected Chrysler dealers contend that the company's federal bankruptcy filing violates state franchise laws. "This thing with Chrysler and General Motors, they're not foregone conclusions," Sam said.
Chuck, Sam, John and Fred Barber met Tuesday for their monthly board meeting in Salt Lake City. They say they were profitable in 2008 and expected to finish this year profitably.
Last October, the brothers cut their own pay, laid off short-term workers and renegotiated contracts with vendors. They say their pain also hurts their communities: the other day, they had to tell Spanish Fork their sponsorship of the rodeo through Dodge won't happen this year.
On the plus side, the Barber brothers are diversified. They also sell Ford, Mitsubishi, Montana tractors, RVs and Vespa scooters.
"This isn't the first time we've been challenged, so we'll do what we always do and we'll see in the end how God deals with that," Sam said.
He it's been tough in his industry, but regardless of the industry, it's tough to witness neighbors and friends losing jobs and losing homes.
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Story compiled with contributions from Jed Boal and Andrew Adams.
