#Jobs
Opel: Steve Girsky Takes Off The Gloves. I'd Keep Them On, The Climate Will Be Icy
Go get them, tiger!
So far, Steve Girsky, dispatched on a mission impossible to Deutschland to clean up Opel, has been dancing like a butterfly, no stinging involved. Apart from targeted leaks, and an announcement to stop making cars in Opel’s Bochum plant after 2016, which really did not surprise anyone, there were no big dispatches about the heroics of Steve the hatchet man, who was sent to the Old Country to stick it to the socialist metalworker Nazis. Today, and most likely after increasingly impatient prodding from Detroit, Steve took his gloves off, and a swing at some 20,000 unionized workers in Germany.
Le Bailout: Brussels Objects To France's Lifeline For PSA
We did not believe that EU regulators would let France’s government bailout of GM’s alliance partner PSA skate through unchallenged. State aid to companies is against EU rules, and refinancing of Banque PSA Finance is state aid EU Competition Commissioner Joaquin Almunia wrote in a letter to the French government. This according to a report in the French daily Les Echos.
PSA Cuts More Jobs In France, Dacia Expands In Morocco
Peugeot is deepening job cuts at its French factories, with another 1,500 positions set to be made redundant as part of a massive cost-cutting effort. Meanwhile, rival automaker Renault is expanding its operations in Morocco as its Dacia brand continues to steamroll through the European market.
Peugeot Kills More Jobs
Peugeot will eliminate an additional 1,500 French jobs by 2014, bringing the previously announced 8,000 layoffs close to 10,000, PSA managers told union representatives yesterday.
Ford, Holden, Lay Off Hundreds Of Workers Amid Slumping Demand
Ford and Holden are laying off hundreds of workers at their Australian plants as sales of domestic brands continue to take a beating.
This Is Your Brain On Drugs Dept.: GM Wants To Announce Opel Plant Closure To Prop Up Obama
With their Washington overlords breathing down their necks, GM executives are pushing Opel for a definitive agreement to close Opel’s Bochum plant. According to the Wall Street Journal, GM “would like to be able to announce the plan before or along with its third-quarter earnings, which are expected to be disclosed Oct. 31.”
Keep smoking.
Volvo Slows Down, Workers Have To Go
Volvo’s Chinese owners at Geely encounter something in Europe that is unheard of in China: A drop in car sales. Volvo has to cut production in Sweden by about 10 percent, and will let 200-300 contract workers go, Reuters says.
Paper: Opel To Cut Each Third Job In Germany. Opel: Nonsense
New panic at GM’s European Opel dependence: Opel needs to shed 30 percent of its workers. This is the supposed target of a “secret strategy” that has been agreed between Opel and GM, says BILD, Europe’s largest circulation newspaper under the headline “One out of three jobs imperiled!”
Based on an anonymous inside source, BILD writes about a three-step phased plan:
Opel Sends Workers Home
GM’s troubled German daughter will close its main factory in Rüsselsheim and its component plant in Kaiserslautern for a total of four weeks in response to a drop in demand for cars in Europe.
Japan Blatantly Copies America, Europe, Imports Cheap Parts From China
The Japanese car industry found a way to soften the impact of the crushingly high yen on its books. It does what U.S. and European automakers have practiced for a long time: Import low-cost parts from abroad. It is a stop-gap measure while large parts of the Japanese car industry is packing.
Ford Collects Australian State Aid, Then Fires 15 Percent Of Workforce
Australians are unhappy with Ford. In January, Ford received more than A$34 million ($35 million) from Australian state and federal governments to guarantee local production until 2016. Today, Reuters reports that Ford will cut 440 jobs, or about 15 percent of its Australian workforce.
PSA Restructuring Includes Plant Closure, 8,000 Jobs Cut
It’s been a long time coming, but PSA has finally done it ; the parent company of Peugeot and Citroen is cutting 8,000 jobs and closing an assembly plant outside Paris, as the carmaker tries to cope with a sagging market and excess capacity.
Peugeot May Cut 10,000 Jobs In France
Bloomberg is reporting that Peugeot may expand their job cuts in France, with the potential for 10 percent of their domestic warehouse to be cut.
Coda Withdraws DOE Loan Request Worth $334 Million
Coda Automotive withdrew a Department of Energy loan application after two years of waiting. The $334 million loan was supposed to have gone towards establishing an assembly plant in Columbus, Ohio, but for now, production will continue in China.
GM Issues Media Black-Out For Ellesmere Port
GM has turned its Ellesmere Port plant into “a no-go area for media amid ongoing speculation over its future,” says The Guardian. Staff and suppliers have been told to avoid reporters. “Attempts to photograph Astras awaiting delivery at the site’s distribution centre prompt a visit from security guards who ask the Guardian to desist,” says the paper.
Recent Comments