Nov. 30, 2011 online at www.uawlocal2250.com
From the Civil Rights Committee: This is the final week to submit essays for the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Scholarship awards. All entries must be postmarked by this Friday. Also, there will be a Civil Rights committee meeting today after first shift at the Union Hall.
From the Education Committee: We would like to thank everyone for their support on the basket raffle. The winners are: Kim Steffes (Premier) and Camella Woodson (core team).
There are still plenty of names available for the Adopt-A-Child for Christmas program. You can see Wanda Richard, Tina Hayes or Mike Bridgins for a name.
From Wards Auto: Credit a new production discipline and a more sober approach to inventory management, which has resulted in pricing power and allowed General Motors to flourish in the U.S. after the bankruptcy. GM simply does not need to keep its assembly plants running to cover massive fixed costs. Don Johnson, GM’s sales chief, told a meeting of Wall Street analysts in New York recently that the auto maker is using a new system to manage its inventories more tightly, without providing details of the approach. However, he says it amounts to every executive with a stake in GM’s inventory levels – from finance to marketing to sales – attending monthly meetings chaired by North America President Mark Reuss. “All the right people are in the room,” Johnson says. Production forecasts looking out 18 months are reviewed based on current production levels and monthly sales expectations. Some months, the group meets twice to make production adjustments if events dictate, Johnson says. Adjustments are made according to how high or low inventories for a specific model line, body style or weight class move off their optimum levels. Decisions made over monthly production schedules and incentive spending during the meeting is followed to the letter, which in the old GM was not always the case. “We have a process that can be followed,” Johnson says. “People could still choose to ignore it, but the culture of the company is so much more disciplined on these issues.” GM also sticks to a 60-day marketing plan, making only slight tweaks where necessary. The old GM might have sprung a new plan on dealers at the last minute in the hopes of making a certain number of sales in a given month. Rarely were such programs successful. “Often, dealers didn’t have time to comprehend the program, get their staff together on it and get advertising out to support it,” Johnson says.
From the Wall Street Journal: General Motors Co. said a “small number” of Chevrolet Volt owners have asked for loaner vehicles while the auto maker and federal regulators investigate whether the cars are at risk of catching fire after a serious crash. The auto maker on Monday offered loaners to 6,000 U.S. Volt owners in an effort to reassure customers after three crash-tests resulted in fires or sparks from the vehicle’s complex battery pack days or weeks after they sustained damage. A GM spokesman declined to give an exact number, but characterized the number of loaner requests and “a few” and “a small number.”
From the Detroit Free Press: The Detroit Three are poised to go on a hiring binge over the next four years as car and truck sales rebound and new labor contracts make it less costly for the automakers to add employees in the U.S., according to the Center for Automotive Research. General Motors, Ford and Chrysler are likely to add 30,000 hourly and salaried employees in the U.S. by 2015, analysts from the Center for Automotive Research said during panel discussion this morning at Schoolcraft College. The Detroit Three’s employment increases will be driven by a recovery of industry sales, recent market share gains and new labor contracts that make it less costly for the automakers to employ autoworkers in the U.S., said Kristin Dziczek, director of the labor group for the Center for Automotive Research. Dziczek also said she expects total employment for all U.S. automakers and suppliers will increase over the next four years by about 28%, or from 590,000 to 756,000. What’s more, many suppliers who have closed plants and cut employment to survive the recent recession are likely to struggle to find the right workers as demand for parts increases. “About 100,000 to 150,000 people need to be hired by suppliers over the next four years,” said Kristin Dziczek, director of the labor group for the Center for Automotive Research. David Andrea, vice president of industry analysis and economics for the Original Equipment Suppliers Association, agreed. The top performing auto suppliers are already scrambling to find skilled workers, Andrea said. “We are seeing significant pockets of constrained capacity,” Andrea said. “Those suppliers have to hire.” Sean McAlinden, senior economist for the Center for Automotive Research, said the UAW will gain about 10,000 new members as a result of job commitments made by the Detroit Three during the recent round of contract talks. McAlinden said he expects the number of hourly UAW members employed by the Detroit Three will increase from 110,000 to about 120,000 by 2015. McAlinden said his estimate is lower than the individual promises publicized by the UAW and the Detroit Three in recent months because it excludes existing workers who are relocating to new plants and includes expected membership losses due to retirement. Still, the job gains for the UAW and the Detroit Three are small compared with historical levels. Total UAW membership has declined from about 1.5 million members to less than 400,000 last year. Total employment for GM, Ford and Chrysler has declined from about 1 million in 1978 to less than 200,000 in 2010, according to Art Schwartz, president of Labor and Economics Associates and former General Motors labor negotiator.
Wednesday, November 30, 2011
Monday, November 28, 2011
State of the Union November 28, 2011
Nov. 28, 2011 online at uawlocal2250.com
The referral process is now open. On back you will find the instructions on how to complete a referral. As before, it must be done online. Unfortunately, temporary employees will not be able to refer someone.
The annual Pre-Trim bake sale will be held next Monday, Dec. 5 at the team center located at column T-49. Donations can be turned in at the team center prior to the bake sale, which begins at first break and goes until all items are sold. The proceeds go to the Community Services committee to benefit Adopt-A-Child.
Here is this week’s build information: 24 E-26 vans; 1019 cutaways; 300 slider doors; 273 15-pass vans; 22.6% 07 loop; 99 diesels; 86 r/h door deletes; 20 brake deck spare tire; 372 Onstar; 60 exports; 389 Enterprise rent-a-car; 258 U-Haul; 135 Penske; 84.7% white vans.
From Automotive News: General Motors said today that it will provide free loaner vehicles to Chevrolet Volt owners to offer "peace of mind" as federal safety regulators investigate fires that have occurred in the plug-in hybrid's battery pack after crash testing. In a conference call with the media, General Motors executives tried to tamp down growing concerns over the Volt's safety after officials from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration on Friday opened a formal investigation into the risk of fire in Volts that have been involved in severe crashes. "I believe in the safety of the Volt," said Mark Reuss, GM president of North America. "Our customers' peace of mind is the most important thing. This technology should inspire confidence and pride, not raise any concern or doubt." Reuss said GM today is sending letters to all Volt customers and dealersto reassure them that the Volt is "safe to drive" and to clarify that the investigation centers on the risk of an electrical fire that can happen days or even weeks after a severe crash. On Nov. 11, NHTSA disclosed that a Volt that it had been involved in a side-impact crash test in May caught fire three weeks later in a storage facility. NHTSA determined that damage to the vehicle's lithium ion battery led to the fire, but said it didn't believe that the Volt or other electric vehicles were a greater fire risk than gasoline-powered vehicles. On Friday, NHTSA said it conducted three follow-up tests this month that intentionally damaged the Volt's battery pack. Two of those tests caused a fire. "The agency is concerned that damage to the Volt's batteries as part of three tests that are explicitly designed to replicate real-world crash scenarios have resulted in fire," the agency said in a statement Friday. It added: "Chevy Volt owners whose vehicles have not been in a serious crash do not have reason for concern."
11/23/11
WENTZVILLE ASSEMBLY CENTER
TEAM MEMBER REFERRALS PROCESS
Effective immediately Wentzville Assembly will be utilizing the team member referral process to replenish our future candidate pool.
Each active Seniority Hourly and Salaried employee may refer ONE candidate ONLY through the online system (no paper applications will be accepted).
Referrals are done thru mySocrates at https://mygm.gm.com
SEE ATTACHED
-If you have issues the mySocrates website, contact 1-888-337-2400.
-If you have issues with the referral website (not Socrates) contact
1-800-973-1465.
The utilization of new Team Member Referrals is also dependent on final approval by Local and National Parties.
Candidates will be randomly selected and assessed by a central processing center.
Candidates, who worked in previous years ie temporary, WILL HAVE TO BE referred again, unless still in process (contact the person you referred or have the person you referred call 1-800-973-1465).
Candidates who did not successfully pass all aspects of previous testing will not be retested at the time, even if re-referred.
Access to the web site will be from midnight on 11/28/11 and close at 11:00 pm on 12/09/11.
The referral process is now open. On back you will find the instructions on how to complete a referral. As before, it must be done online. Unfortunately, temporary employees will not be able to refer someone.
The annual Pre-Trim bake sale will be held next Monday, Dec. 5 at the team center located at column T-49. Donations can be turned in at the team center prior to the bake sale, which begins at first break and goes until all items are sold. The proceeds go to the Community Services committee to benefit Adopt-A-Child.
Here is this week’s build information: 24 E-26 vans; 1019 cutaways; 300 slider doors; 273 15-pass vans; 22.6% 07 loop; 99 diesels; 86 r/h door deletes; 20 brake deck spare tire; 372 Onstar; 60 exports; 389 Enterprise rent-a-car; 258 U-Haul; 135 Penske; 84.7% white vans.
From Automotive News: General Motors said today that it will provide free loaner vehicles to Chevrolet Volt owners to offer "peace of mind" as federal safety regulators investigate fires that have occurred in the plug-in hybrid's battery pack after crash testing. In a conference call with the media, General Motors executives tried to tamp down growing concerns over the Volt's safety after officials from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration on Friday opened a formal investigation into the risk of fire in Volts that have been involved in severe crashes. "I believe in the safety of the Volt," said Mark Reuss, GM president of North America. "Our customers' peace of mind is the most important thing. This technology should inspire confidence and pride, not raise any concern or doubt." Reuss said GM today is sending letters to all Volt customers and dealersto reassure them that the Volt is "safe to drive" and to clarify that the investigation centers on the risk of an electrical fire that can happen days or even weeks after a severe crash. On Nov. 11, NHTSA disclosed that a Volt that it had been involved in a side-impact crash test in May caught fire three weeks later in a storage facility. NHTSA determined that damage to the vehicle's lithium ion battery led to the fire, but said it didn't believe that the Volt or other electric vehicles were a greater fire risk than gasoline-powered vehicles. On Friday, NHTSA said it conducted three follow-up tests this month that intentionally damaged the Volt's battery pack. Two of those tests caused a fire. "The agency is concerned that damage to the Volt's batteries as part of three tests that are explicitly designed to replicate real-world crash scenarios have resulted in fire," the agency said in a statement Friday. It added: "Chevy Volt owners whose vehicles have not been in a serious crash do not have reason for concern."
11/23/11
WENTZVILLE ASSEMBLY CENTER
TEAM MEMBER REFERRALS PROCESS
Effective immediately Wentzville Assembly will be utilizing the team member referral process to replenish our future candidate pool.
Each active Seniority Hourly and Salaried employee may refer ONE candidate ONLY through the online system (no paper applications will be accepted).
Referrals are done thru mySocrates at https://mygm.gm.com
SEE ATTACHED
-If you have issues the mySocrates website, contact 1-888-337-2400.
-If you have issues with the referral website (not Socrates) contact
1-800-973-1465.
The utilization of new Team Member Referrals is also dependent on final approval by Local and National Parties.
Candidates will be randomly selected and assessed by a central processing center.
Candidates, who worked in previous years ie temporary, WILL HAVE TO BE referred again, unless still in process (contact the person you referred or have the person you referred call 1-800-973-1465).
Candidates who did not successfully pass all aspects of previous testing will not be retested at the time, even if re-referred.
Access to the web site will be from midnight on 11/28/11 and close at 11:00 pm on 12/09/11.
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
State of the Union November 23, 2011
Nov. 23, 2011 online at www.uawlocal2250.com
From Chairman Mike Bullock: I would like to wish everyone a safe and Happy Thanksgiving holiday weekend. We, in particular, have much to be thankful for here as we add our 2nd shift and prepare for a new product. Also, I would encourage you to participate in the “Adopt A Child” Christmas program – it is a great cause. Finally, remember to try to buy American as you do your Christmas shopping this weekend and beyond.
If you have any questions regarding 2nd shift, you can write them down and drop them in the “Ask John” boxes at the entrances. Your questions will either be answered individually or in the 2ndshift updates in this newsletter.
From the UAW: The UAW strongly supports the proposals detailed in the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) issued by the Department of Transportation and the Environmental Protection Agency. "This proposal represents a historic step forward for the U.S. automobile industry," said UAW President Bob King. "It will provide certainty for the manufacturers, significant savings at the gas pump for consumers, and it will create tens of thousands of jobs engineering and producing the technology needed to make vehicles more efficient." King added that, "The Obama administration deserves tremendous credit for including stakeholders in the development of the proposal. The regulatory process of public comments and field hearings will make the proposals stronger and more robust, and the UAW is committed to supporting the proposals during the next phase of rulemaking." A 2010 study by the UAW and the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), "Driving Growth," found that improving light-duty vehicle efficiency to 40 mpg by 2020 could create up to 190,000 jobs in the United States. A 2011 study by the UAW, NRDC and the National Wildlife Federation found that there are currently over 500 facilities in the United States employing more than 150,000 people engaged in some aspect of developing or producing fuel-efficient vehicles or their key components. "We believe that this sets the stage for a green-based revival of the U.S. auto industry," said King. "By delivering the efficient vehicles customers want, we will become more competitive, and that is ultimately what leads to a brighter future for everyone in our industry."
From Business Week: U.S. automakers are split on whether to abandon their small pickups, which buyers have left for dead and regulators may try to revive. Ford Motor Co. is ending U.S. sales of Ranger and betting it can hold its share of full-size trucks by concentrating resources on the F-Series. GM is wagering that buyers may come back to the mid-size segment if gasoline prices rise. Mid-size pickups cost almost as much as their full-size counterparts without much boost in fuel economy. “The segment has been in decline for quite a while, so that calls into question whether it’s viable,” R.L. Polk & Co.’s Tom Libby said in a phone interview. “The trend going in the other direction is fuel-economy requirements and an inevitable movement toward smaller vehicles. It’s an unsettled situation.” Mike Levine, a Ford spokesman, said, “You really can’t argue with the sales numbers here. We have very strong demand for full-size pickups, and that’s where we are putting our time and investment.”
One in five owners of GM and Chrysler’s smaller trucks who returned to market for a new vehicle last year moved up into the full-size segment, according to Polk data. The rate among Ford owners was about one in six. If Ford’s gamble falls through, it would undo relentless efforts to protect the “crown jewel” F-150 from Toyota Motor Corp. and Nissan Motor Co., Libby said. “The domestic manufacturers poured everything they had into their products to try and stop Toyota” and have succeeded, he said. Compact trucks have plunged to 16 percent of pickup sales this year through October. Toyota and Nissan now have 56 percent of the mid-size truck segment and only 7 percent of the full-size market.
• From Bloomberg: Toyota may shift a significant amount of production to the U.S. should demand in Japan fail to rebound and the majority of its output is shipped overseas. "If demand in Japan recovers, we will continue and work to maintain production of 3 million units" in Japan, President Akio Toyoda said Thursday. "If most of it becomes exports, shifting a significant amount of production to the U.S. may be considered." The automaker has pledged to protect jobs in Japan even though the yen's appreciation to a post-World War II high versus the dollar has eroded profitability. The yen has gained more than 9% against the U.S. dollar in the past six months. Toyota, which reported an operating loss of 32.6 billion yen ($425 million) in the fiscal first half, said the strong yen reduced operating income by 130 billion yen ($1.75 billion). The yen's appreciation against the dollar and euro slashed Japanese automakers' profit by 330 billion yen ($4.3 billion) in the first half, according to JAMA. "If the yen continues to stay strong, Toyota will collapse," Toyoda said.
From Chairman Mike Bullock: I would like to wish everyone a safe and Happy Thanksgiving holiday weekend. We, in particular, have much to be thankful for here as we add our 2nd shift and prepare for a new product. Also, I would encourage you to participate in the “Adopt A Child” Christmas program – it is a great cause. Finally, remember to try to buy American as you do your Christmas shopping this weekend and beyond.
If you have any questions regarding 2nd shift, you can write them down and drop them in the “Ask John” boxes at the entrances. Your questions will either be answered individually or in the 2ndshift updates in this newsletter.
From the UAW: The UAW strongly supports the proposals detailed in the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) issued by the Department of Transportation and the Environmental Protection Agency. "This proposal represents a historic step forward for the U.S. automobile industry," said UAW President Bob King. "It will provide certainty for the manufacturers, significant savings at the gas pump for consumers, and it will create tens of thousands of jobs engineering and producing the technology needed to make vehicles more efficient." King added that, "The Obama administration deserves tremendous credit for including stakeholders in the development of the proposal. The regulatory process of public comments and field hearings will make the proposals stronger and more robust, and the UAW is committed to supporting the proposals during the next phase of rulemaking." A 2010 study by the UAW and the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), "Driving Growth," found that improving light-duty vehicle efficiency to 40 mpg by 2020 could create up to 190,000 jobs in the United States. A 2011 study by the UAW, NRDC and the National Wildlife Federation found that there are currently over 500 facilities in the United States employing more than 150,000 people engaged in some aspect of developing or producing fuel-efficient vehicles or their key components. "We believe that this sets the stage for a green-based revival of the U.S. auto industry," said King. "By delivering the efficient vehicles customers want, we will become more competitive, and that is ultimately what leads to a brighter future for everyone in our industry."
From Business Week: U.S. automakers are split on whether to abandon their small pickups, which buyers have left for dead and regulators may try to revive. Ford Motor Co. is ending U.S. sales of Ranger and betting it can hold its share of full-size trucks by concentrating resources on the F-Series. GM is wagering that buyers may come back to the mid-size segment if gasoline prices rise. Mid-size pickups cost almost as much as their full-size counterparts without much boost in fuel economy. “The segment has been in decline for quite a while, so that calls into question whether it’s viable,” R.L. Polk & Co.’s Tom Libby said in a phone interview. “The trend going in the other direction is fuel-economy requirements and an inevitable movement toward smaller vehicles. It’s an unsettled situation.” Mike Levine, a Ford spokesman, said, “You really can’t argue with the sales numbers here. We have very strong demand for full-size pickups, and that’s where we are putting our time and investment.”
One in five owners of GM and Chrysler’s smaller trucks who returned to market for a new vehicle last year moved up into the full-size segment, according to Polk data. The rate among Ford owners was about one in six. If Ford’s gamble falls through, it would undo relentless efforts to protect the “crown jewel” F-150 from Toyota Motor Corp. and Nissan Motor Co., Libby said. “The domestic manufacturers poured everything they had into their products to try and stop Toyota” and have succeeded, he said. Compact trucks have plunged to 16 percent of pickup sales this year through October. Toyota and Nissan now have 56 percent of the mid-size truck segment and only 7 percent of the full-size market.
• From Bloomberg: Toyota may shift a significant amount of production to the U.S. should demand in Japan fail to rebound and the majority of its output is shipped overseas. "If demand in Japan recovers, we will continue and work to maintain production of 3 million units" in Japan, President Akio Toyoda said Thursday. "If most of it becomes exports, shifting a significant amount of production to the U.S. may be considered." The automaker has pledged to protect jobs in Japan even though the yen's appreciation to a post-World War II high versus the dollar has eroded profitability. The yen has gained more than 9% against the U.S. dollar in the past six months. Toyota, which reported an operating loss of 32.6 billion yen ($425 million) in the fiscal first half, said the strong yen reduced operating income by 130 billion yen ($1.75 billion). The yen's appreciation against the dollar and euro slashed Japanese automakers' profit by 330 billion yen ($4.3 billion) in the first half, according to JAMA. "If the yen continues to stay strong, Toyota will collapse," Toyoda said.
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
State of the Union November 21, 2011
Nov. 21, 2011 online at www.uawlocal2250.com
Reminder: This Wednesday, Nov. 23, is a holiday qualifying day and a VR blackout day. Monday, Nov. 28 is a VR blackout day.
Last break this week will run from 2:30 to 2:34 and no line time will be longer than 9 hours. Also, the uniform store will be open Wednesday from 8 am to 4 pm to handle the extra demand.
This week’s build information: 48 E-26 vans; 562 cutaways; 124 15-pass vans; 24.1% 07 loop; 221 slider doors; 111 r/h door deletes; 78 diesels; 176 Onstar; 59 exports, 16 brake deck spare tire; 46 U-Haul; 45 Penske; 81% white vans.
From Automotive News: Chevrolet's upcoming mid-sized pickup will give owners nearly the same capability as a full-sized light-duty pickup but with lower operating expenses. "You may have 85, 90 percent of what a big pickup will do" in terms of capability, said Mark Reuss, General Motors North America president, during an interview at the Los Angeles auto show. Many truck owners do not need a full-sized pickup's capability, Reuss said. Last month GM announced that a redesigned Colorado pickup would be offered in the United States. The mid-sized model will replace the current Colorado pickup, a compact, and it will be assembled in Wentzville, Mo. The truck is based on GM's new global, body-on-frame, rear-wheel-drive, mid-sized platform. It is slightly longer and wider than the Colorado, but the company has not disclosed dimensions. The truck is a response to new federal regulations that require vehicles to have better fuel economy and lower emissions. Speaking of the mid-sized pickup, Reuss said that "rather than putting full-blown four-mode hybrids or two-mode hybrids into large pickup trucks and trying to get efficiency out of it, which is extremely expensive, we can do things with lower displacement, hybridization, alternate fuels." Reuss described the new Colorado as a "very, very nice mid-sized pickup that is really cheap to run." Reuss would not say whether GMC will market a similar model. But if GM did replace the GMC Canyon, the pickup would have separate sheet metal, different price points and models. "If we did that it would be a different approach than a Chevrolet," he said. Compact and mid-sized pickups accounted for 16.5 percent of the total U.S. pickup market in 2010, according to the Automotive News Data Center.
General Motors is recalling 1,798 early model 2012 Chevrolet Express and GMC Savana full-size vans in the United States because the second stage of the passenger air bag may fail to deploy in a severe crash. The issue is missing propellant in some air bags that could prevent the air bag from deploying as designed. The air bag supplier told GM about the issue after another manufacturer it supplies had a similar issue. The suspect GM vehicles were produced in a four-month period from June to October. GM knows of no reports of complaints, crashes or injuries resulting from the condition. Dealers will replace the passenger air bag for free in the recalled vehicles.
General Motors will invest $61 million to bring its idled Spring Hill assembly plant back to life as one of the world’s most-flexible manufacturing facilities capable of building any GM car or crossover based on customer demand or manufacturing need. The investment will create 594 hourly jobs and 91 salaried positions for the flexible operation scheduled to begin with the hot-selling Chevrolet Equinox in the second half of 2012. The additional production will supplement Equinox production in Canada, the main assembly sites of the midsize crossover vehicle and its sibling the GMC Terrain. The Equinox has been so popular – U.S. sales were up 18 percent in October – that GM has increased production three times since it went into production in 2009. GM also announced Monday a second investment of $183 million for future midsize vehicles to be built at Spring Hill, located about 40 miles south of Nashville. Timing was not announced, but that investment is expected to create an additional 1,090 hourly and 106 salaried positions. “Spring Hill has a history as one of GM’s most innovative and flexible plants,” said Cathy Clegg, vice president of GM Labor Relations. “We’re pleased that, working together with the UAW, we were able to build on that history and develop a plan to resume production at Spring Hill.” "Our number one priority in auto negotiations this year was jobs," said UAW President Bob King. "We asked the company to bring jobs back to America , and that’s what this collective bargaining agreement represents. Together, we are bringing 1,800 jobs to Tennessee, and a total of 6,400 new GM jobs, which translates to nearly 60,000 good, auto-related jobs in the United States." Equinox production is only the start for Spring Hill Flex. Operators will be capable of building a variety of products on a range of platforms – covering for plants being retooled for new products and also allowing real-time reaction to sales spikes in a given car or crossover. "The re-opening of Spring Hill is a testament to the value of collective bargaining," said UAW Vice President Joe Ashton, who directs the union's General Motors Department. "Collective bargaining works for companies, for workers and for America. Collective bargaining is what brought good jobs to Tennessee. It is what built our middle class. It is how workers and communities have a voice in corporate decision-making. Bargaining is what gives the working class a seat at the table."
Reminder: This Wednesday, Nov. 23, is a holiday qualifying day and a VR blackout day. Monday, Nov. 28 is a VR blackout day.
Last break this week will run from 2:30 to 2:34 and no line time will be longer than 9 hours. Also, the uniform store will be open Wednesday from 8 am to 4 pm to handle the extra demand.
This week’s build information: 48 E-26 vans; 562 cutaways; 124 15-pass vans; 24.1% 07 loop; 221 slider doors; 111 r/h door deletes; 78 diesels; 176 Onstar; 59 exports, 16 brake deck spare tire; 46 U-Haul; 45 Penske; 81% white vans.
From Automotive News: Chevrolet's upcoming mid-sized pickup will give owners nearly the same capability as a full-sized light-duty pickup but with lower operating expenses. "You may have 85, 90 percent of what a big pickup will do" in terms of capability, said Mark Reuss, General Motors North America president, during an interview at the Los Angeles auto show. Many truck owners do not need a full-sized pickup's capability, Reuss said. Last month GM announced that a redesigned Colorado pickup would be offered in the United States. The mid-sized model will replace the current Colorado pickup, a compact, and it will be assembled in Wentzville, Mo. The truck is based on GM's new global, body-on-frame, rear-wheel-drive, mid-sized platform. It is slightly longer and wider than the Colorado, but the company has not disclosed dimensions. The truck is a response to new federal regulations that require vehicles to have better fuel economy and lower emissions. Speaking of the mid-sized pickup, Reuss said that "rather than putting full-blown four-mode hybrids or two-mode hybrids into large pickup trucks and trying to get efficiency out of it, which is extremely expensive, we can do things with lower displacement, hybridization, alternate fuels." Reuss described the new Colorado as a "very, very nice mid-sized pickup that is really cheap to run." Reuss would not say whether GMC will market a similar model. But if GM did replace the GMC Canyon, the pickup would have separate sheet metal, different price points and models. "If we did that it would be a different approach than a Chevrolet," he said. Compact and mid-sized pickups accounted for 16.5 percent of the total U.S. pickup market in 2010, according to the Automotive News Data Center.
General Motors is recalling 1,798 early model 2012 Chevrolet Express and GMC Savana full-size vans in the United States because the second stage of the passenger air bag may fail to deploy in a severe crash. The issue is missing propellant in some air bags that could prevent the air bag from deploying as designed. The air bag supplier told GM about the issue after another manufacturer it supplies had a similar issue. The suspect GM vehicles were produced in a four-month period from June to October. GM knows of no reports of complaints, crashes or injuries resulting from the condition. Dealers will replace the passenger air bag for free in the recalled vehicles.
General Motors will invest $61 million to bring its idled Spring Hill assembly plant back to life as one of the world’s most-flexible manufacturing facilities capable of building any GM car or crossover based on customer demand or manufacturing need. The investment will create 594 hourly jobs and 91 salaried positions for the flexible operation scheduled to begin with the hot-selling Chevrolet Equinox in the second half of 2012. The additional production will supplement Equinox production in Canada, the main assembly sites of the midsize crossover vehicle and its sibling the GMC Terrain. The Equinox has been so popular – U.S. sales were up 18 percent in October – that GM has increased production three times since it went into production in 2009. GM also announced Monday a second investment of $183 million for future midsize vehicles to be built at Spring Hill, located about 40 miles south of Nashville. Timing was not announced, but that investment is expected to create an additional 1,090 hourly and 106 salaried positions. “Spring Hill has a history as one of GM’s most innovative and flexible plants,” said Cathy Clegg, vice president of GM Labor Relations. “We’re pleased that, working together with the UAW, we were able to build on that history and develop a plan to resume production at Spring Hill.” "Our number one priority in auto negotiations this year was jobs," said UAW President Bob King. "We asked the company to bring jobs back to America , and that’s what this collective bargaining agreement represents. Together, we are bringing 1,800 jobs to Tennessee, and a total of 6,400 new GM jobs, which translates to nearly 60,000 good, auto-related jobs in the United States." Equinox production is only the start for Spring Hill Flex. Operators will be capable of building a variety of products on a range of platforms – covering for plants being retooled for new products and also allowing real-time reaction to sales spikes in a given car or crossover. "The re-opening of Spring Hill is a testament to the value of collective bargaining," said UAW Vice President Joe Ashton, who directs the union's General Motors Department. "Collective bargaining works for companies, for workers and for America. Collective bargaining is what brought good jobs to Tennessee. It is what built our middle class. It is how workers and communities have a voice in corporate decision-making. Bargaining is what gives the working class a seat at the table."
Thursday, November 17, 2011
State of the Union November 17, 2011
Nov. 17, 2011
Next week’s daily schedule will be no longer than 9 hours each day. We also have received the tentative production schedules for January and February. For the first week of January, the first day back is Tuesday, Jan. 3, and the start times for both shifts will be 6 am. This will be a 10.6 hour day. Wednesday, Jan. 4, the second shift employees will start 12 pm noon. These shifts will be 10.7 hours. Thursday, Jan. 5, second shift will start again at noon. These shifts will be 10.7 hours. There will be no production Friday due to the holiday on Monday. The second week the shifts will be split and the schedule will be 4-10 hour days with Friday the 13th off. The third week has the Martin Luther King holiday on Monday the 16th and we will work 10.6, 10.7 and 10.7 Tuesday through Thursday with Friday off. The fourth week is 5-10 hour days. February is all 10-hour days with three Fridays scheduled for production and one off – the 10th. As usual this is subject to change.
From Forbes: As birthdays go, this one was pretty lousy. On Nov. 9, just a week before the first anniversary of its return as a public company, General Motors warned investors that deteriorating economic conditions in Europe would hurt fourth-quarter results. GM said profit would be flat compared with last year and it would not achieve its target to break even in Europe for the period. A marketwide selloff over the European debt crisis that day didn't help, but shares of GM, which reported a solid $2.2 billion (EBIT) profit for the third quarter--its seventh profitable quarter in a row--took a particularly bad beating, falling 11%. Then on Nov. 11 shares plunged again--but later recovered--on news that a Chevrolet Volt caught fire after a government crash test. It was nothing new for the new GM, which went public at $33, peaked a little over $39 in January and now trades for about $22. The fact that the U.S. Treasury still owns a huge chunk of GM--about 32%--doesn't help. Nor do memories of the taxpayer bailout or decades of substandard cars. Yet there's a lot going right at GM, and it's all easy to overlook. Profit margins in North America and China, the world's two largest auto markets, are 10%, among the best in the industry, even though sales volumes, at least in the U.S., are still at depressed levels. Imagine what GM's North American profit will look like when car sales recover. Its balance sheet is healthy, with $33 billion in cash and just $4 billion in debt. Its U.S. labor costs are now competitive. Its unfunded pension liability has shrunk by half in the past year, due to cash and stock contributions and GM's "de-risking" of its pension investment portfolio. Most important, GM is turning out some impressive cars that are fetching higher prices, which bodes well for the future. If the Chevrolet Sonic doesn't change your mind about GM, nothing will.
This sporty 40 mpg subcompact is not only a huge leap ahead of the Chevy Aveo it replaces, but it's also perhaps the best car in a very tough segment, which includes the Honda Fit, Ford Fiesta and Hyundai Accent, all great cars. The Sonic comes on the heels of the new Chevy Cruze and Buick Regal, both of which have been well received. The compact Buick Verano, another impressive car to drive, is hitting showrooms now. Next year GM has more promising vehicles in the pipeline, including a new Chevrolet Malibu sedan, the compact Cadillac ATS and the full-size Cadillac XTS. Since bankruptcy GM has also managed to be disciplined when it comes to discounts and incentives. GM's incentive spending, as a percentage of average transaction price, was about 9.8% in the third quarter, only slightly above the industry average. Through the first nine months of the year about $1.2 billion in profit can be attributed directly to better pricing. If GM can continue to hold the line, transaction prices should stay strong and add to profitability.
Ford CEO Alan Mulally, in an interview with Automotive News, was asked a question about whether the Ford Ranger would get a reprieve given GM’s announcement to build and sell the Colorado here. His answer: “We don't have any plans for it now. The market segment is really small. Most people were in it for fuel efficiency in a smaller vehicle. Now we have a fantastic offering of small and medium-sized cars and utilities, so we essentially have what the customers say they really want and value.”
From the Detroit News: The Obama administration said Wednesday its proposal to nearly double auto fuel efficiency standards to 54.5 mpg by 2025 will cost the auto industry $157.3 billion. The new rules will save more than $1.7 trillion at the pump, the administration said, and have net benefits of $252 billion to $358 billion. Off the additional costs to the auto industry, an estimated $113 billion will go to boost passenger car fuel economy and $44 billion to improve light truck mileage. The proposal will boost the cost of an average car in 2025 by $2,023 and light trucks by $1,578. Costs could be as high as $2,800, however, under a different forecasting analysis, the administration said. The plan, it says, will have other benefits, including saving motorists time at the gas pump, because they'll be fueling up less often. The fewer trips are worth $10 billion or more in saved time. Less gas also means less fuel tax revenue — about $50 billion — and the government will have to figure out how to replace revenue for road repairs. The Obama administration said it chose not to forecast whether the new rules and higher costs will cause auto sales to rise or fall. Margo Oge, EPA's director of the Office of Transportation & Air Quality, predicted the regulations would have a "modest" impact on sales. "This regulation gambles that millions of consumers will be able to afford thousands more for generally smaller, more expensive vehicles that may not meet their needs," said the National Automobile Dealers Association, which notes that, including efficiency hikes for 2011-2016, the overall new car prices will actually be about $3,000 higher by 2025. Complying with the proposed fuel requirements, the government estimates, will cost General Motors Co. $37.8 billion, Ford Motor Co. $29.4 billion, the Chrysler-Fiat alliance $9.7 billion and Toyota Motor Corp. $23.2 billion. Estimates are $15.3 billion for Honda Motor Co., $15 billion for Nissan Motor Co., $8.2 billion for Hyundai Motor Co. and $4.1 billion for its Kia unit. The rules go easier on SUVs and pickups than on cars. These light trucks must improve fuel efficiency by 3.5 percent annually between 2017-21, compared to 5 percent each year for cars. A steep fall-off in full-size SUV sales is expected — from 3.3 percent of vehicles sold in 2016 to 0.63 percent in 2025.
Next week’s daily schedule will be no longer than 9 hours each day. We also have received the tentative production schedules for January and February. For the first week of January, the first day back is Tuesday, Jan. 3, and the start times for both shifts will be 6 am. This will be a 10.6 hour day. Wednesday, Jan. 4, the second shift employees will start 12 pm noon. These shifts will be 10.7 hours. Thursday, Jan. 5, second shift will start again at noon. These shifts will be 10.7 hours. There will be no production Friday due to the holiday on Monday. The second week the shifts will be split and the schedule will be 4-10 hour days with Friday the 13th off. The third week has the Martin Luther King holiday on Monday the 16th and we will work 10.6, 10.7 and 10.7 Tuesday through Thursday with Friday off. The fourth week is 5-10 hour days. February is all 10-hour days with three Fridays scheduled for production and one off – the 10th. As usual this is subject to change.
From Forbes: As birthdays go, this one was pretty lousy. On Nov. 9, just a week before the first anniversary of its return as a public company, General Motors warned investors that deteriorating economic conditions in Europe would hurt fourth-quarter results. GM said profit would be flat compared with last year and it would not achieve its target to break even in Europe for the period. A marketwide selloff over the European debt crisis that day didn't help, but shares of GM, which reported a solid $2.2 billion (EBIT) profit for the third quarter--its seventh profitable quarter in a row--took a particularly bad beating, falling 11%. Then on Nov. 11 shares plunged again--but later recovered--on news that a Chevrolet Volt caught fire after a government crash test. It was nothing new for the new GM, which went public at $33, peaked a little over $39 in January and now trades for about $22. The fact that the U.S. Treasury still owns a huge chunk of GM--about 32%--doesn't help. Nor do memories of the taxpayer bailout or decades of substandard cars. Yet there's a lot going right at GM, and it's all easy to overlook. Profit margins in North America and China, the world's two largest auto markets, are 10%, among the best in the industry, even though sales volumes, at least in the U.S., are still at depressed levels. Imagine what GM's North American profit will look like when car sales recover. Its balance sheet is healthy, with $33 billion in cash and just $4 billion in debt. Its U.S. labor costs are now competitive. Its unfunded pension liability has shrunk by half in the past year, due to cash and stock contributions and GM's "de-risking" of its pension investment portfolio. Most important, GM is turning out some impressive cars that are fetching higher prices, which bodes well for the future. If the Chevrolet Sonic doesn't change your mind about GM, nothing will.
This sporty 40 mpg subcompact is not only a huge leap ahead of the Chevy Aveo it replaces, but it's also perhaps the best car in a very tough segment, which includes the Honda Fit, Ford Fiesta and Hyundai Accent, all great cars. The Sonic comes on the heels of the new Chevy Cruze and Buick Regal, both of which have been well received. The compact Buick Verano, another impressive car to drive, is hitting showrooms now. Next year GM has more promising vehicles in the pipeline, including a new Chevrolet Malibu sedan, the compact Cadillac ATS and the full-size Cadillac XTS. Since bankruptcy GM has also managed to be disciplined when it comes to discounts and incentives. GM's incentive spending, as a percentage of average transaction price, was about 9.8% in the third quarter, only slightly above the industry average. Through the first nine months of the year about $1.2 billion in profit can be attributed directly to better pricing. If GM can continue to hold the line, transaction prices should stay strong and add to profitability.
Ford CEO Alan Mulally, in an interview with Automotive News, was asked a question about whether the Ford Ranger would get a reprieve given GM’s announcement to build and sell the Colorado here. His answer: “We don't have any plans for it now. The market segment is really small. Most people were in it for fuel efficiency in a smaller vehicle. Now we have a fantastic offering of small and medium-sized cars and utilities, so we essentially have what the customers say they really want and value.”
From the Detroit News: The Obama administration said Wednesday its proposal to nearly double auto fuel efficiency standards to 54.5 mpg by 2025 will cost the auto industry $157.3 billion. The new rules will save more than $1.7 trillion at the pump, the administration said, and have net benefits of $252 billion to $358 billion. Off the additional costs to the auto industry, an estimated $113 billion will go to boost passenger car fuel economy and $44 billion to improve light truck mileage. The proposal will boost the cost of an average car in 2025 by $2,023 and light trucks by $1,578. Costs could be as high as $2,800, however, under a different forecasting analysis, the administration said. The plan, it says, will have other benefits, including saving motorists time at the gas pump, because they'll be fueling up less often. The fewer trips are worth $10 billion or more in saved time. Less gas also means less fuel tax revenue — about $50 billion — and the government will have to figure out how to replace revenue for road repairs. The Obama administration said it chose not to forecast whether the new rules and higher costs will cause auto sales to rise or fall. Margo Oge, EPA's director of the Office of Transportation & Air Quality, predicted the regulations would have a "modest" impact on sales. "This regulation gambles that millions of consumers will be able to afford thousands more for generally smaller, more expensive vehicles that may not meet their needs," said the National Automobile Dealers Association, which notes that, including efficiency hikes for 2011-2016, the overall new car prices will actually be about $3,000 higher by 2025. Complying with the proposed fuel requirements, the government estimates, will cost General Motors Co. $37.8 billion, Ford Motor Co. $29.4 billion, the Chrysler-Fiat alliance $9.7 billion and Toyota Motor Corp. $23.2 billion. Estimates are $15.3 billion for Honda Motor Co., $15 billion for Nissan Motor Co., $8.2 billion for Hyundai Motor Co. and $4.1 billion for its Kia unit. The rules go easier on SUVs and pickups than on cars. These light trucks must improve fuel efficiency by 3.5 percent annually between 2017-21, compared to 5 percent each year for cars. A steep fall-off in full-size SUV sales is expected — from 3.3 percent of vehicles sold in 2016 to 0.63 percent in 2025.
Wednesday, November 16, 2011
State of the Union November 16, 2011
Nov. 16, 2011 online at www.uawlocal2250.com
Reminder: Union meeting is today at 1 pm, 3 pm and 15 minutes after the longest first shift line time.
From Community Services: Names are now available for the annual Adopt-A-Child Christmas event. You can see Wanda Richard, Tina Hayes or Mike Bridgins for a child’s name or you can make a donation. There is no limit on the number of needy children available so let’s open our hearts and wallets in true Wentzville fashion to help those less fortunate than us to have a Merry Christmas.
From Bloomberg: General Motors Co. will suspend production at its factory that assembles Chevrolet Cruze compact cars for one week to avoid oversupply of the model as Japanese rivals’ inventories rebound (net field stock stands at 67 days, up from 39 last month). The Lordstown, Ohio, plant will stop output for the week of Nov. 28, Chris Lee, a spokesman for the Detroit-based automaker, said in a phone interview. United Auto Workers Local 1714, which represents the plant’s hourly workers, cited competitors’ inventories recovering from the March earthquake and tsunami in Japan as a reason for the shutdown in a message to members on its website. Cruze has outsold Honda’s Civic this year through October and trails Toyota’s Corolla by 1,316 deliveries. “We don’t want to overproduce,” GM’s Lee said in a phone interview. “Those days are gone from a GM standpoint. We’re just keeping it in control and we’ll ramp it back up and be prepared for a strong start after the first of the year.”
From the Detroit Free Press: The UAW is laying off about 58 staff workers who belong to a separate union to help balance a budget that has been squeezed by membership losses in recent years. The layoffs are the result of an August agreement that provided buyout offers to the Office and Professional Employees International Union, which represents about 260 UAW employees. A total of 100 members of the OPEIU who work at the UAW will be laid off or accept a voluntary buyout package. "Following the nation's economic collapse, the UAW lost an unprecedented number of members," UAW President Bob King said in a statement. "The UAW has drastically reduced the number of staff on payroll, cut the benefits and pay of its staff, cut post-retiree health care benefits, among other measures," King said. The UAW hoped enough workers would accept the buyout offer to prevent any layoffs. "Since the number of OPEIU reduced did not match the goal, layoffs are necessary," King said in the statement.
From the New York Times: Jay Leno is nearing a milestone. “I took delivery of the Volt on Dec. 12 last year,” Mr. Leno said in a telephone interview before appearing Tuesday at a Chevrolet event held in conjunction with the Los Angeles auto show. “And I’ve never had to put gas in it yet.” The comedian and late-night television host said he had put about 11,000 miles on his Chevrolet Volt in the last 11 months. “They gave it to me with a full tank of gas,” he said. The tank, by the way, holds 9.3 gallons. “I’ve used less than half of that.” Mr. Leno’s expansive garage is in Burbank, and every car is maintained with a full tank of gas, current registration and valid insurance, so he can select any one of them for a drive. Some of the cars are almost never driven. Not so his Volt. It has quickly become a favorite. “It’s my daily driver,” he said. “It really is. I commute in it to work every day. My commute, and all my other daily running around, totals less than 35 miles.” Chevrolet claims that the Volt can travel about 40 miles on electric power alone, under normal driving conditions, before the juice in the batteries would be depleted, after which the car’s small gasoline engine would provide added range. “You get 40 miles free, as they say,” Mr. Leno said. “Because of the way I drive it, it almost never kicks into gasoline mode.” Mr. Leno echoed one of the primary marketing points used by Chevrolet to differentiate the Volt from purely electric cars like the Nissan Leaf. “I mean, I could jump in it and drive to Vegas,” he said, a trip of about 280 miles, door to door, from Burbank. “They say the range is something like 400 miles.” The Leaf can travel roughly 100 miles before requiring a charge. Aside from the mileage, Mr. Leno said he was also pleased with the rest of the car, especially its technology. “It’s a real breakthrough,” he said. “I know people probably get tired of hearing me say that. But it really is.” The comedian then went for the rimshot line. “You know it’s good because they lose money on every one of them they sell,” he said.
• Forbes compiled their worst car/truck flops for 2011 and one particular recipient caught our attention. That would be Consumer Reports pick for most reliable pickup, the Nissan Titan. How in the name of Japanese bias can that be? Take it over, Forbes: “Web2Cars warns potential buyers that the Titan’s ‘noisy V-8 and exhaust may interrupt the driving experience.’ It also notes that the truck’s reliability has dropped well below average for the past five model years. The Titan lacks a full-time AWD to match the power output, and a lack of passenger room for crew cab models makes it subpar compared to competitors.”
While we’re on the topic of Nissan flops, the Wall Street Journal reports the NV full size van is expanding its marketing horizons in an effort to juice early anemic sales by presenting a couple of chow-wagon concepts at the Los Angeles auto show this week. Interested in a gourmet grilled cheese on wheels? How about a strawberry/jalapeno ice cream cone? Nissan’s got your answer with their custom vans ready to deliver these culinary delights (?) to your door. Desperate times call for desperate measures.
Reminder: Union meeting is today at 1 pm, 3 pm and 15 minutes after the longest first shift line time.
From Community Services: Names are now available for the annual Adopt-A-Child Christmas event. You can see Wanda Richard, Tina Hayes or Mike Bridgins for a child’s name or you can make a donation. There is no limit on the number of needy children available so let’s open our hearts and wallets in true Wentzville fashion to help those less fortunate than us to have a Merry Christmas.
From Bloomberg: General Motors Co. will suspend production at its factory that assembles Chevrolet Cruze compact cars for one week to avoid oversupply of the model as Japanese rivals’ inventories rebound (net field stock stands at 67 days, up from 39 last month). The Lordstown, Ohio, plant will stop output for the week of Nov. 28, Chris Lee, a spokesman for the Detroit-based automaker, said in a phone interview. United Auto Workers Local 1714, which represents the plant’s hourly workers, cited competitors’ inventories recovering from the March earthquake and tsunami in Japan as a reason for the shutdown in a message to members on its website. Cruze has outsold Honda’s Civic this year through October and trails Toyota’s Corolla by 1,316 deliveries. “We don’t want to overproduce,” GM’s Lee said in a phone interview. “Those days are gone from a GM standpoint. We’re just keeping it in control and we’ll ramp it back up and be prepared for a strong start after the first of the year.”
From the Detroit Free Press: The UAW is laying off about 58 staff workers who belong to a separate union to help balance a budget that has been squeezed by membership losses in recent years. The layoffs are the result of an August agreement that provided buyout offers to the Office and Professional Employees International Union, which represents about 260 UAW employees. A total of 100 members of the OPEIU who work at the UAW will be laid off or accept a voluntary buyout package. "Following the nation's economic collapse, the UAW lost an unprecedented number of members," UAW President Bob King said in a statement. "The UAW has drastically reduced the number of staff on payroll, cut the benefits and pay of its staff, cut post-retiree health care benefits, among other measures," King said. The UAW hoped enough workers would accept the buyout offer to prevent any layoffs. "Since the number of OPEIU reduced did not match the goal, layoffs are necessary," King said in the statement.
From the New York Times: Jay Leno is nearing a milestone. “I took delivery of the Volt on Dec. 12 last year,” Mr. Leno said in a telephone interview before appearing Tuesday at a Chevrolet event held in conjunction with the Los Angeles auto show. “And I’ve never had to put gas in it yet.” The comedian and late-night television host said he had put about 11,000 miles on his Chevrolet Volt in the last 11 months. “They gave it to me with a full tank of gas,” he said. The tank, by the way, holds 9.3 gallons. “I’ve used less than half of that.” Mr. Leno’s expansive garage is in Burbank, and every car is maintained with a full tank of gas, current registration and valid insurance, so he can select any one of them for a drive. Some of the cars are almost never driven. Not so his Volt. It has quickly become a favorite. “It’s my daily driver,” he said. “It really is. I commute in it to work every day. My commute, and all my other daily running around, totals less than 35 miles.” Chevrolet claims that the Volt can travel about 40 miles on electric power alone, under normal driving conditions, before the juice in the batteries would be depleted, after which the car’s small gasoline engine would provide added range. “You get 40 miles free, as they say,” Mr. Leno said. “Because of the way I drive it, it almost never kicks into gasoline mode.” Mr. Leno echoed one of the primary marketing points used by Chevrolet to differentiate the Volt from purely electric cars like the Nissan Leaf. “I mean, I could jump in it and drive to Vegas,” he said, a trip of about 280 miles, door to door, from Burbank. “They say the range is something like 400 miles.” The Leaf can travel roughly 100 miles before requiring a charge. Aside from the mileage, Mr. Leno said he was also pleased with the rest of the car, especially its technology. “It’s a real breakthrough,” he said. “I know people probably get tired of hearing me say that. But it really is.” The comedian then went for the rimshot line. “You know it’s good because they lose money on every one of them they sell,” he said.
• Forbes compiled their worst car/truck flops for 2011 and one particular recipient caught our attention. That would be Consumer Reports pick for most reliable pickup, the Nissan Titan. How in the name of Japanese bias can that be? Take it over, Forbes: “Web2Cars warns potential buyers that the Titan’s ‘noisy V-8 and exhaust may interrupt the driving experience.’ It also notes that the truck’s reliability has dropped well below average for the past five model years. The Titan lacks a full-time AWD to match the power output, and a lack of passenger room for crew cab models makes it subpar compared to competitors.”
While we’re on the topic of Nissan flops, the Wall Street Journal reports the NV full size van is expanding its marketing horizons in an effort to juice early anemic sales by presenting a couple of chow-wagon concepts at the Los Angeles auto show this week. Interested in a gourmet grilled cheese on wheels? How about a strawberry/jalapeno ice cream cone? Nissan’s got your answer with their custom vans ready to deliver these culinary delights (?) to your door. Desperate times call for desperate measures.
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
State of the Union November 15, 2011
Nov. 15, 2011 online at www.uawlocal2250.com
• Reminder: Union meeting is tomorrow at 1 pm, 3 pm and 15 minutes after the longest first shift line time.
• From the Civil Rights Committee: The following are the winners of the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. fundraiser: 1st prize ($9,039) – Lynn Emery, body shop; 2nd prize (laptop computer) – Jamie Callaway, skilled trades; 3rd prize – ($300 gift card) – Earl Lee Jr., quality; $50 gas card winners – Lou Moos, Jeff Harris, Jim O’Conner. Thank you for your continued support.
• Here is this week’s build information: 26 E-26 vans; 679 cutaways; 240 slider doors; 135 15- pass vans; 22.4% 07 loop; 142 r/h door deletes; 94 diesels; 244 Onstar; 70 exports; 36 brake deck spare tire; 300 Penske; 168 Enterprise rent-a-car; 38 government vans; 68.3% white vans.
• From CNN: In last Wednesday night's Republican presidential debate in Rochester, Michigan, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney said the federal government played too much of a role in saving automakers General Motors and Chrysler. He said he would have preferred a private bankruptcy process rather than the U.S. government giving billions of dollars in loans and taking a stake in the companies in 2009 (even though there was no private funding available at the time). He criticized the government's influence in the process, saying it essentially gave General Motors to the United Auto Workers, and Chrysler to Italian automaker Fiat. The statement: "They gave General Motors to the UAW, and they gave Chrysler to Fiat." -- former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney.
The facts: In 2009, both General Motors and Chrysler went into bankruptcy to restructure after receiving billions of dollars in federal loans. As General Motors emerged from bankruptcy in July 2009, the U.S. Treasury took a 60.8% stake in the company in return for a $50 billion bailout. A trust established to fund health care benefits for UAW retirees -- not the UAW itself -- took a 17.5% stake. The Canadian government took a 12.5% stake, and unsecured bondholders were given a 10% share. The trust fund came about as part of GM's restructuring. The UAW essentially agreed to shift responsibility for retiree health care costs away from GM to the union-controlled trust fund, consisting of company stock rather than cash. Stock for the post-bankruptcy GM was available for public trading starting in November 2010. As of August, the U.S. Treasury still owned about a third of the shares, with the UAW fund owning about 12.8%, according to Fortune.
• From the Detroit News: One year after its much-heralded IPO, which raised a record $23.1 billion, General Motors Co.'s stock has swooned 30 percent from its initial offering price. And taxpayers are still holding a big chunk of stock on which they'll lose money if the government were to sell off its stake now. At the current trading price, the government stands to lose about $15 billion on its investment in GM. The stock would have to climb to at least $53 a share for the U.S. Treasury to break even. Wall Street analysts remain optimistic the stock will rebound, eventually, listing it at a "moderate buy" based on the automaker's consistent quarterly profits, its focus on emerging global markets and its ambitious U.S. investment plans. But a slowdown in the world market and troubles in Europe have prompted analysts to dial down earlier expectations. GM stock tumbled 10.9 percent last Wednesday — to $22.31 — after the Detroit-based automaker revised its year-end outlook, saying fourth-quarter earnings will be flat over 2010. The company no longer expects to break even in Europe this year, a reversal of its previous forecast. On Monday, GM stock closed up 2.1 percent, to $22.99. "What we are looking at is an increasingly challenged economic environment going forward with a lot of uncertainty," GM Chief Financial Officer Dan Ammann said. GM plans to completely address its U.S. pension plan underfunding in the next few years. GM has cut its pension underfunding from $18 billion in late 2010 to $8.7 billion as of Sept. 30.
• Reminder: Union meeting is tomorrow at 1 pm, 3 pm and 15 minutes after the longest first shift line time.
• From the Civil Rights Committee: The following are the winners of the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. fundraiser: 1st prize ($9,039) – Lynn Emery, body shop; 2nd prize (laptop computer) – Jamie Callaway, skilled trades; 3rd prize – ($300 gift card) – Earl Lee Jr., quality; $50 gas card winners – Lou Moos, Jeff Harris, Jim O’Conner. Thank you for your continued support.
• Here is this week’s build information: 26 E-26 vans; 679 cutaways; 240 slider doors; 135 15- pass vans; 22.4% 07 loop; 142 r/h door deletes; 94 diesels; 244 Onstar; 70 exports; 36 brake deck spare tire; 300 Penske; 168 Enterprise rent-a-car; 38 government vans; 68.3% white vans.
• From CNN: In last Wednesday night's Republican presidential debate in Rochester, Michigan, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney said the federal government played too much of a role in saving automakers General Motors and Chrysler. He said he would have preferred a private bankruptcy process rather than the U.S. government giving billions of dollars in loans and taking a stake in the companies in 2009 (even though there was no private funding available at the time). He criticized the government's influence in the process, saying it essentially gave General Motors to the United Auto Workers, and Chrysler to Italian automaker Fiat. The statement: "They gave General Motors to the UAW, and they gave Chrysler to Fiat." -- former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney.
The facts: In 2009, both General Motors and Chrysler went into bankruptcy to restructure after receiving billions of dollars in federal loans. As General Motors emerged from bankruptcy in July 2009, the U.S. Treasury took a 60.8% stake in the company in return for a $50 billion bailout. A trust established to fund health care benefits for UAW retirees -- not the UAW itself -- took a 17.5% stake. The Canadian government took a 12.5% stake, and unsecured bondholders were given a 10% share. The trust fund came about as part of GM's restructuring. The UAW essentially agreed to shift responsibility for retiree health care costs away from GM to the union-controlled trust fund, consisting of company stock rather than cash. Stock for the post-bankruptcy GM was available for public trading starting in November 2010. As of August, the U.S. Treasury still owned about a third of the shares, with the UAW fund owning about 12.8%, according to Fortune.
• From the Detroit News: One year after its much-heralded IPO, which raised a record $23.1 billion, General Motors Co.'s stock has swooned 30 percent from its initial offering price. And taxpayers are still holding a big chunk of stock on which they'll lose money if the government were to sell off its stake now. At the current trading price, the government stands to lose about $15 billion on its investment in GM. The stock would have to climb to at least $53 a share for the U.S. Treasury to break even. Wall Street analysts remain optimistic the stock will rebound, eventually, listing it at a "moderate buy" based on the automaker's consistent quarterly profits, its focus on emerging global markets and its ambitious U.S. investment plans. But a slowdown in the world market and troubles in Europe have prompted analysts to dial down earlier expectations. GM stock tumbled 10.9 percent last Wednesday — to $22.31 — after the Detroit-based automaker revised its year-end outlook, saying fourth-quarter earnings will be flat over 2010. The company no longer expects to break even in Europe this year, a reversal of its previous forecast. On Monday, GM stock closed up 2.1 percent, to $22.99. "What we are looking at is an increasingly challenged economic environment going forward with a lot of uncertainty," GM Chief Financial Officer Dan Ammann said. GM plans to completely address its U.S. pension plan underfunding in the next few years. GM has cut its pension underfunding from $18 billion in late 2010 to $8.7 billion as of Sept. 30.
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
State of the Union November 9, 2011
Nov. 9, 2011 online at www.uawlocal2250.com
There will be a Women’s Committee meeting Thursday after first shift at the Union Hall. All are invited to attend.
Here are the winners of the suggestion fair drawings: Big Screen TV – Kim Martinez, chassis; Apparel and Golf passes – James Morton, Jim Stack, Brian Hoffman, chassis; Glenn House, quhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifality; Ann McFadden, material; Steve Hotard, paint; Rocky, skilled trades; Michael Sevener, new hire.
Team leader applications will be accepted today through Friday for current or future Chassis department members only. Testing will be done next week for the 6 remaining openings.
Financial results for GM’s third quarter are in. North American operations earnings before taxes were $2.203 billion, which equates to $2200 profit sharing. Overall, GM’s earnings were $1.726 billion on revenue of $36.8 billion, down from $1.959 billion last year. GM’s fortunes reversed in Europe, where it lost $292 million in the third quarter after posting a net profit in the second quarter. But the loss in Europe was less than the $559 million GM lost there in the third quarter of 2010. GM now does not expect to break even in Europe for the year before restructuring charges, which had been its goal, GM CFO Dan Ammann told reporters today. "We obviously have significant macroeconomic challenges to address there," Amman said. Profits at GM's international division, which includes China, fell 29 percent to $365 million. Ammann said earnings in China were up, but unfavorable exchange rates in other markets curbed profits. GM lost $44 million in South America during the quarter after posting steady profits of around $100 million or $200 million there in recent quarters. In the third quarter of 2010, GM had posted South American profits of $163 million. GM Financial posted a third-quarter pretax profit of $178 million. It was not a subsidiary a year earlier. GM is forecasting fourth quarter earnings to be essentially the same as last year, which was around $1 billion with NA earnings of $800 million.
From the Chaplaincy Committee: There will be a Veterans Day Memorial Friday, Nov. 11 at lunch time in the Chassis Chapel located at column C-42. All are welcome to attend.
From Automotive News: Nissan North America Inc. will expand its cargo van into a people hauler next spring when it introduces the NV3500 HD passenger van. The 12-passenger van will have four rows of seats and offer two engine options, a 317-hp V-8 with 385 pounds-feet of torque or a 261-hp 4.0-liter V-6 with 281 pounds-feet of torque. Both engines will be paired with a five-speed automatic transmission. The van will feature 324 seat configurations, with removable second and third-row seats.
From the Detroit News: General Motors Co. has taken a big step toward reducing retiree costs in Canada by setting up a health care trust fund similar to the one established by the United AutoWorkers union. The company said Tuesday it received final legal approval to establish the independent fund, which will cover health care benefits for about 32,000 retirees represented by the Canadian Auto Workers union. The fund, effective Oct. 31, allows GM to shift the expense of caring for aging retirees to the union-run health fund. "The new health care trust is another step forward as we work to de-risk and strengthen our balance sheet and position the company for sustainable profitability," said GM CFO Dan Ammann in a statement. The Detroit-based automaker expects the transaction will take about $3 billion in retiree liabilities off its books. GM and the Canadian union first agreed to the health care trust in June 2009 as part of cost-cutting measures associated with the automaker's bankruptcy restructuring. Establishment was held up by legal approvals. GM will pay in total over $2.5 billion into the fund over the next seven years, starting with an initial payment of $1 billion.
From the Detroit Free Press: Toyota said its quarterly profit slid 18.5 percent to $1 billion on plunging sales caused by parts shortages from the tsunami disaster in northeastern Japan and warned it faces a new challenge from flooding in Thailand. Toyota Motor Corp. declined Tuesday to give a forecast for the full financial year ending March 2012, citing uncertainties stemming from the Thai floods which have disrupted supplies of parts and prompted it to cut some car production. Toyota, Japan's top automaker, said that vehicle sales plunged in the key markets of Japan and North America, but it was making up for some of the losses by strong sales in Asia, such as India and Indonesia. Toyota's quarterly sales fell nearly 5 percent from a year earlier to $58.7 billion. Also battering Toyota is the surging yen. Toyota counted on the dollar costing 86 yen last year, but is now seeing it slip to 78 yen. Toyota said the unfavorable exchange rate erased $1 billion from its latest quarterly net income. Toyota, which was the world's biggest automaker in annual vehicle sales last year, sank to No. 3 in the first half of this year, trailing U.S. rival General Motors Co. and Volkswagen AG of Germany.
From the Wall Street Journal: Toyota Motor Corp. said it will recall about 283,200 Toyota and 137,000 Lexus vehicles to replace the crankshaft pulleys on their V6 engines. The recall includes the 2004 Avalon; 2004 and 2005 Camry, Highlander, Sienna, and Solara; 2006 Highlander HV; 2004 and 2005 Lexus ES330 and RX330; and 2006 RX400h. The car maker said no other Toyota or Lexus vehicles, or versions of the listed vehicles with 4-cylinder engines are affected. The problem stems from the outer ring of the crankshaft pulley, which may become misaligned with the inner ring, causing noise and possibly illumination of a warning light. If the problem isn’t corrected the belt for the power steering pump may detach from the pulley and the driver may notice a sudden increase in the effort required to turn the steering wheel. The recall is expected to begin in January, when Toyota hopes to have enough parts available to make the repairs.
There will be a Women’s Committee meeting Thursday after first shift at the Union Hall. All are invited to attend.
Here are the winners of the suggestion fair drawings: Big Screen TV – Kim Martinez, chassis; Apparel and Golf passes – James Morton, Jim Stack, Brian Hoffman, chassis; Glenn House, quhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifality; Ann McFadden, material; Steve Hotard, paint; Rocky, skilled trades; Michael Sevener, new hire.
Team leader applications will be accepted today through Friday for current or future Chassis department members only. Testing will be done next week for the 6 remaining openings.
Financial results for GM’s third quarter are in. North American operations earnings before taxes were $2.203 billion, which equates to $2200 profit sharing. Overall, GM’s earnings were $1.726 billion on revenue of $36.8 billion, down from $1.959 billion last year. GM’s fortunes reversed in Europe, where it lost $292 million in the third quarter after posting a net profit in the second quarter. But the loss in Europe was less than the $559 million GM lost there in the third quarter of 2010. GM now does not expect to break even in Europe for the year before restructuring charges, which had been its goal, GM CFO Dan Ammann told reporters today. "We obviously have significant macroeconomic challenges to address there," Amman said. Profits at GM's international division, which includes China, fell 29 percent to $365 million. Ammann said earnings in China were up, but unfavorable exchange rates in other markets curbed profits. GM lost $44 million in South America during the quarter after posting steady profits of around $100 million or $200 million there in recent quarters. In the third quarter of 2010, GM had posted South American profits of $163 million. GM Financial posted a third-quarter pretax profit of $178 million. It was not a subsidiary a year earlier. GM is forecasting fourth quarter earnings to be essentially the same as last year, which was around $1 billion with NA earnings of $800 million.
From the Chaplaincy Committee: There will be a Veterans Day Memorial Friday, Nov. 11 at lunch time in the Chassis Chapel located at column C-42. All are welcome to attend.
From Automotive News: Nissan North America Inc. will expand its cargo van into a people hauler next spring when it introduces the NV3500 HD passenger van. The 12-passenger van will have four rows of seats and offer two engine options, a 317-hp V-8 with 385 pounds-feet of torque or a 261-hp 4.0-liter V-6 with 281 pounds-feet of torque. Both engines will be paired with a five-speed automatic transmission. The van will feature 324 seat configurations, with removable second and third-row seats.
From the Detroit News: General Motors Co. has taken a big step toward reducing retiree costs in Canada by setting up a health care trust fund similar to the one established by the United AutoWorkers union. The company said Tuesday it received final legal approval to establish the independent fund, which will cover health care benefits for about 32,000 retirees represented by the Canadian Auto Workers union. The fund, effective Oct. 31, allows GM to shift the expense of caring for aging retirees to the union-run health fund. "The new health care trust is another step forward as we work to de-risk and strengthen our balance sheet and position the company for sustainable profitability," said GM CFO Dan Ammann in a statement. The Detroit-based automaker expects the transaction will take about $3 billion in retiree liabilities off its books. GM and the Canadian union first agreed to the health care trust in June 2009 as part of cost-cutting measures associated with the automaker's bankruptcy restructuring. Establishment was held up by legal approvals. GM will pay in total over $2.5 billion into the fund over the next seven years, starting with an initial payment of $1 billion.
From the Detroit Free Press: Toyota said its quarterly profit slid 18.5 percent to $1 billion on plunging sales caused by parts shortages from the tsunami disaster in northeastern Japan and warned it faces a new challenge from flooding in Thailand. Toyota Motor Corp. declined Tuesday to give a forecast for the full financial year ending March 2012, citing uncertainties stemming from the Thai floods which have disrupted supplies of parts and prompted it to cut some car production. Toyota, Japan's top automaker, said that vehicle sales plunged in the key markets of Japan and North America, but it was making up for some of the losses by strong sales in Asia, such as India and Indonesia. Toyota's quarterly sales fell nearly 5 percent from a year earlier to $58.7 billion. Also battering Toyota is the surging yen. Toyota counted on the dollar costing 86 yen last year, but is now seeing it slip to 78 yen. Toyota said the unfavorable exchange rate erased $1 billion from its latest quarterly net income. Toyota, which was the world's biggest automaker in annual vehicle sales last year, sank to No. 3 in the first half of this year, trailing U.S. rival General Motors Co. and Volkswagen AG of Germany.
From the Wall Street Journal: Toyota Motor Corp. said it will recall about 283,200 Toyota and 137,000 Lexus vehicles to replace the crankshaft pulleys on their V6 engines. The recall includes the 2004 Avalon; 2004 and 2005 Camry, Highlander, Sienna, and Solara; 2006 Highlander HV; 2004 and 2005 Lexus ES330 and RX330; and 2006 RX400h. The car maker said no other Toyota or Lexus vehicles, or versions of the listed vehicles with 4-cylinder engines are affected. The problem stems from the outer ring of the crankshaft pulley, which may become misaligned with the inner ring, causing noise and possibly illumination of a warning light. If the problem isn’t corrected the belt for the power steering pump may detach from the pulley and the driver may notice a sudden increase in the effort required to turn the steering wheel. The recall is expected to begin in January, when Toyota hopes to have enough parts available to make the repairs.
Monday, November 7, 2011
State of the Union November 7, 2011
State of the Union
Nov. 7, 2011 online at www.uawlocal2250.com
There will be a Suggestion Fair on Tuesday, Nov. 8, to promote use of the Suggestion program. It will be located at the bleachers at column B-38. There will be popcorn and a drawing for a big screen TV, but you need to have submitted a suggestion this year to be eligible. There will also be drawings for a Chevy Colorado jacket and other items that do not require having a suggestion submitted. Stop by to learn more about the suggestion program beginning at first break.
The Community Services Committee will be having a meeting Tuesday after first shift in the cafeteria.
For the first month in a very long time, we outsold the Ford Econoline. Here are the October sales results for the van market:
2011 2010 Change Share
GM 7331 6286 + 16.6% 44.3%
Ford Econoline 6806 7379 - 7.8% 41.1%
Mercedes Sprinter 1485 725 +112.7% 8.9%
Nissan NV 941 --- --- 5.7%
Ford Transit connect 2180 2577 - 12.2% ---
While overall net field supplies fell by 706 units, the slower sales rate resulted
in an increase in the days supply to 57 from 50 at the end of September. Passenger vans continue to be in short supply with only 606 units total. Chevy cargo vans are at a 43 day supply while cutaway inventories are around 100 days supply.
Here is this week’s build information: 44 E-26 vans; 726 cutaways; 301 slider doors; 130 15-pass vans; 120 r/h door deletes; 92 diesels; 307 Onstar; 28 brake deck spare tire; 332 Penske vans; 259 AT&T cng vans; 146 Enterprise cargo vans; 75.4% white vans; model mix is 31% cutaways, 51% cargo and 18% passenger (24% 07 loop).
There was extensive media coverage of last Thursday’s announcement. Here are some websites you can go to for articles, pictures and videos :
o https://gmweb.gm.com/sites/socrates/Pages/home.aspx
o http://www.gov.mo.gov/
o http://gallery.me.com/stevefechtphoto#106578
JEFFREY BROWN: But I guess I'm asking you about the potential rift, the frustrations within union ranks (about CEO pay and two-tier wages).
BOB KING: Well, you want to make -- I'm sorry, but you seem like you want to make a rift where I don't think there's a rift.
JEFFREY BROWN: OK.
BOB KING: Traditional workers voted overwhelmingly to support entry-level workers getting $3.50 raise -- an-hour raise, even though they were not.
We have seen this over and over again in the UAW. In the agricultural implement industry, we were forced into a two-tier situation a number of years ago. We have done three contracts since then. Every contract, the traditional workers have demanded that more be done to equalize the newer workers. And that's our goal in the auto industry, too.
JEFFREY BROWN: So what is the situation for the auto industry more broadly, after we watched what happened a couple years ago? Where are we now?
BOB KING: Well, we're in much better shape than we were.
We're concerned about what is going on in Europe. I mean, we're all tied together globally, economically. So we know we're not out of the woods yet. If Europe deteriorates economically, that will have impact in the U.S.
You know, right now, we were just in some meetings with General Motors today, with global unions and General Motors. And one of the points that the company was making that I concur with is that we think that the 13 million SAAR is steady because a lot of people are buying vehicles. They are replacing vehicles now.
Of course, we'd love to see it back up to 16, 17, but if we stay in the 13, 14 area, we will have healthy companies. Our members will share in profit-sharing. We will be building capacity and building strength for the future.
JEFFREY BROWN: And, more broadly, we're, of course, in this era where we're seeing many states push back against their public sector unions and more states talking about or implementing right-to-work laws. How do you make a case now for the traditional union in our era?
BOB KING: Well, I think the best example is the auto industry.
Here's business, management, and labor, and the government all work together. Rather than polarizing and taking polarizing positions, we came to the table collectively. We said, here are the issues. How do we do creative problem-solving to help the companies and help our membership?
And I think we showed both during a period of bankruptcy and now with this agreement that we can work together for the good of the companies, for the good of our membership and for the good of our communities and our country.
JEFFREY BROWN: And you think you can make a case to the American public that unions are still important?
BOB KING: I think absolutely we can. We're proving it.
If it wasn't for the UAW, a lot of these investments would have been all over the world and not in the United States of America. We stood up for our members. We stood up for America. And to the company's credit, they worked with us in creating jobs and investment here in the United States of America.
And so I believe in American consumers, which are already showing more preference again for U.S.-made vehicles, because we're making the highest-quality vehicles. We're going to -- we're going to see the market share grow for General Motors and for Chrysler and for Ford.
There will be no SOU for Tuesday November 8, 2011.
Nov. 7, 2011 online at www.uawlocal2250.com
There will be a Suggestion Fair on Tuesday, Nov. 8, to promote use of the Suggestion program. It will be located at the bleachers at column B-38. There will be popcorn and a drawing for a big screen TV, but you need to have submitted a suggestion this year to be eligible. There will also be drawings for a Chevy Colorado jacket and other items that do not require having a suggestion submitted. Stop by to learn more about the suggestion program beginning at first break.
The Community Services Committee will be having a meeting Tuesday after first shift in the cafeteria.
For the first month in a very long time, we outsold the Ford Econoline. Here are the October sales results for the van market:
2011 2010 Change Share
GM 7331 6286 + 16.6% 44.3%
Ford Econoline 6806 7379 - 7.8% 41.1%
Mercedes Sprinter 1485 725 +112.7% 8.9%
Nissan NV 941 --- --- 5.7%
Ford Transit connect 2180 2577 - 12.2% ---
While overall net field supplies fell by 706 units, the slower sales rate resulted
in an increase in the days supply to 57 from 50 at the end of September. Passenger vans continue to be in short supply with only 606 units total. Chevy cargo vans are at a 43 day supply while cutaway inventories are around 100 days supply.
Here is this week’s build information: 44 E-26 vans; 726 cutaways; 301 slider doors; 130 15-pass vans; 120 r/h door deletes; 92 diesels; 307 Onstar; 28 brake deck spare tire; 332 Penske vans; 259 AT&T cng vans; 146 Enterprise cargo vans; 75.4% white vans; model mix is 31% cutaways, 51% cargo and 18% passenger (24% 07 loop).
There was extensive media coverage of last Thursday’s announcement. Here are some websites you can go to for articles, pictures and videos :
o https://gmweb.gm.com/sites/socrates/Pages/home.aspx
o http://www.gov.mo.gov/
o http://gallery.me.com/stevefechtphoto#106578
JEFFREY BROWN: But I guess I'm asking you about the potential rift, the frustrations within union ranks (about CEO pay and two-tier wages).
BOB KING: Well, you want to make -- I'm sorry, but you seem like you want to make a rift where I don't think there's a rift.
JEFFREY BROWN: OK.
BOB KING: Traditional workers voted overwhelmingly to support entry-level workers getting $3.50 raise -- an-hour raise, even though they were not.
We have seen this over and over again in the UAW. In the agricultural implement industry, we were forced into a two-tier situation a number of years ago. We have done three contracts since then. Every contract, the traditional workers have demanded that more be done to equalize the newer workers. And that's our goal in the auto industry, too.
JEFFREY BROWN: So what is the situation for the auto industry more broadly, after we watched what happened a couple years ago? Where are we now?
BOB KING: Well, we're in much better shape than we were.
We're concerned about what is going on in Europe. I mean, we're all tied together globally, economically. So we know we're not out of the woods yet. If Europe deteriorates economically, that will have impact in the U.S.
You know, right now, we were just in some meetings with General Motors today, with global unions and General Motors. And one of the points that the company was making that I concur with is that we think that the 13 million SAAR is steady because a lot of people are buying vehicles. They are replacing vehicles now.
Of course, we'd love to see it back up to 16, 17, but if we stay in the 13, 14 area, we will have healthy companies. Our members will share in profit-sharing. We will be building capacity and building strength for the future.
JEFFREY BROWN: And, more broadly, we're, of course, in this era where we're seeing many states push back against their public sector unions and more states talking about or implementing right-to-work laws. How do you make a case now for the traditional union in our era?
BOB KING: Well, I think the best example is the auto industry.
Here's business, management, and labor, and the government all work together. Rather than polarizing and taking polarizing positions, we came to the table collectively. We said, here are the issues. How do we do creative problem-solving to help the companies and help our membership?
And I think we showed both during a period of bankruptcy and now with this agreement that we can work together for the good of the companies, for the good of our membership and for the good of our communities and our country.
JEFFREY BROWN: And you think you can make a case to the American public that unions are still important?
BOB KING: I think absolutely we can. We're proving it.
If it wasn't for the UAW, a lot of these investments would have been all over the world and not in the United States of America. We stood up for our members. We stood up for America. And to the company's credit, they worked with us in creating jobs and investment here in the United States of America.
And so I believe in American consumers, which are already showing more preference again for U.S.-made vehicles, because we're making the highest-quality vehicles. We're going to -- we're going to see the market share grow for General Motors and for Chrysler and for Ford.
There will be no SOU for Tuesday November 8, 2011.
Thursday, November 3, 2011
State of the Union November 2, 2011
Today's edition is a 2nd shift update:
SECOND SHIFT UPDATE
As everyone knows, the entire plant is in the process of preparing for the kickoff of the second shift, which will be Jan. 3, 2012. There have been many questions about a wide variety of topics, and while all of them will not be answered here, we will give you the latest information we have.
Second shift split schedule: The first day back, Tuesday,Jan. 3, the start times for both shifts will be 6 am. This will be a 10.7 hour day. The build schedule is 0, although the line will obviously run some. This day will be dedicated to training. Wednesday, Jan. 4, the second shift employees will start 12 pm noon. The build schedule is 25 per shift. These shifts will be 10.7 hours. Thursday, Jan. 5, second shift will start again at noon and the build schedule is 50 per shift. These shifts will be 10.6 hours. There will be no production Friday due to the holiday on Monday. Then on Monday, Jan. 9, the second shift will begin at the normal start time of 5:30 pm.
Production acceleration plan: As mentioned above, the build schedule will begin low but accelerate rapidly. The target at the end of the first full week of two-shift production is 225 per shift. At the end of the third week it is 295 per shift. At the end of the fourth week (Feb. 9) it is 300 per shift. The plan is to reach full production at the end of February and begin March producing 317 units per shift with a net line speed off of the K-line of 34.3 jobs per hour.
Staffing for the second shift: Employees have already been brought into the plant in preparation for the second shift launch (there will be 444 hourly employees added). So far, there have been 16 people under the return to former community clause; 22 have come back that were laid off and had gone time-for-time; 84 temporary employees were hired; and 17 National Area Hire volunteers will be arriving next week.
Quality Metrics: For the first two weeks of January, we will have a direct run rate target of 70. The direct run loss target will be 202.44 and the GCA target will continue to be 50. Direct run target by the end of January will be 75 and direct run loss target will be 192. Direct run rate target by the end of February will be 81 and direct run loss will be 178. We will reach the ongoing plant target of 85 for direct run at the end of March. The direct run loss target will drop every month throughout the year, reaching 144 by the end of December.
Department staffing/training plan: All of the job bidding has been completed. Transfers are being honored based on the training time required for the particular job being filled. As new people are brought in, they are being trained on the jobs that will be vacated by the operators going to these long-lead-time jobs. There are still around 15 openings for team leaders after the latest application/testing phase.
Stamping: There will be approximately 30 people transferring to stamping. There are 13 jobs with a 6-week training requirement. Physicals and training are in progress.
Body shop: Training is already underway as all jobs have been filled. There are 22 jobs requiring 2 weeks of training. As more people come into the Body Shop we will continue to increase the number of people on second. The training on jobs will be done just as it is with any new operator. Training will take place with the Team Leader involved and utilize a revised JIT process that will assure the operator understands & can perform the job.
Paint shop: Paint Department will consist of 79 people when we have 2 shifts. 26 of those positions will be filled by people who are not in paint today. That number is direct and indirect labor. We are utilizing manpower that we currently have in the shop to train up to 9 people a day. We have 6 long lead time jobs that take at least 6 weeks to train on. These include Elpo/mixers, gun techs and final process repair. We had 11 sprayer positions open and so far there have only been 7 filled.
Material: There are 14 long-lead-time jobs in material. There are approximately 60 people transferring to material. Physicals and training are ongoing.
Quality: There are 13 long-lead-time jobs in quality. There are approximately 31 people transferring to the quality department. Training is ongoing.
Facilities preparation for second shift: There will be an enormous amount of rearrangement necessary to facilitate the new line speed and the addition of the second shift. As you may already know, a survey is circulating through the skilled trades to determine the availability of workers on weekends and holidays to perform this work, with the goal of having our trades people do as much of the work as possible. It looks like tentatively, we will need to work maintenance personnel most, if not all, weekends until Christmas break. There will most likely be maintenance personnel working the Thanksgiving weekend and Christmas week. Everything is dependent on how many skilled trades we can get to work and time needed to complete the different aspects of the work. Maintenance personnel are still putting the plan together based on the teams developing each of their scopes of work.
SECOND SHIFT UPDATE
As everyone knows, the entire plant is in the process of preparing for the kickoff of the second shift, which will be Jan. 3, 2012. There have been many questions about a wide variety of topics, and while all of them will not be answered here, we will give you the latest information we have.
Second shift split schedule: The first day back, Tuesday,Jan. 3, the start times for both shifts will be 6 am. This will be a 10.7 hour day. The build schedule is 0, although the line will obviously run some. This day will be dedicated to training. Wednesday, Jan. 4, the second shift employees will start 12 pm noon. The build schedule is 25 per shift. These shifts will be 10.7 hours. Thursday, Jan. 5, second shift will start again at noon and the build schedule is 50 per shift. These shifts will be 10.6 hours. There will be no production Friday due to the holiday on Monday. Then on Monday, Jan. 9, the second shift will begin at the normal start time of 5:30 pm.
Production acceleration plan: As mentioned above, the build schedule will begin low but accelerate rapidly. The target at the end of the first full week of two-shift production is 225 per shift. At the end of the third week it is 295 per shift. At the end of the fourth week (Feb. 9) it is 300 per shift. The plan is to reach full production at the end of February and begin March producing 317 units per shift with a net line speed off of the K-line of 34.3 jobs per hour.
Staffing for the second shift: Employees have already been brought into the plant in preparation for the second shift launch (there will be 444 hourly employees added). So far, there have been 16 people under the return to former community clause; 22 have come back that were laid off and had gone time-for-time; 84 temporary employees were hired; and 17 National Area Hire volunteers will be arriving next week.
Quality Metrics: For the first two weeks of January, we will have a direct run rate target of 70. The direct run loss target will be 202.44 and the GCA target will continue to be 50. Direct run target by the end of January will be 75 and direct run loss target will be 192. Direct run rate target by the end of February will be 81 and direct run loss will be 178. We will reach the ongoing plant target of 85 for direct run at the end of March. The direct run loss target will drop every month throughout the year, reaching 144 by the end of December.
Department staffing/training plan: All of the job bidding has been completed. Transfers are being honored based on the training time required for the particular job being filled. As new people are brought in, they are being trained on the jobs that will be vacated by the operators going to these long-lead-time jobs. There are still around 15 openings for team leaders after the latest application/testing phase.
Stamping: There will be approximately 30 people transferring to stamping. There are 13 jobs with a 6-week training requirement. Physicals and training are in progress.
Body shop: Training is already underway as all jobs have been filled. There are 22 jobs requiring 2 weeks of training. As more people come into the Body Shop we will continue to increase the number of people on second. The training on jobs will be done just as it is with any new operator. Training will take place with the Team Leader involved and utilize a revised JIT process that will assure the operator understands & can perform the job.
Paint shop: Paint Department will consist of 79 people when we have 2 shifts. 26 of those positions will be filled by people who are not in paint today. That number is direct and indirect labor. We are utilizing manpower that we currently have in the shop to train up to 9 people a day. We have 6 long lead time jobs that take at least 6 weeks to train on. These include Elpo/mixers, gun techs and final process repair. We had 11 sprayer positions open and so far there have only been 7 filled.
Material: There are 14 long-lead-time jobs in material. There are approximately 60 people transferring to material. Physicals and training are ongoing.
Quality: There are 13 long-lead-time jobs in quality. There are approximately 31 people transferring to the quality department. Training is ongoing.
Facilities preparation for second shift: There will be an enormous amount of rearrangement necessary to facilitate the new line speed and the addition of the second shift. As you may already know, a survey is circulating through the skilled trades to determine the availability of workers on weekends and holidays to perform this work, with the goal of having our trades people do as much of the work as possible. It looks like tentatively, we will need to work maintenance personnel most, if not all, weekends until Christmas break. There will most likely be maintenance personnel working the Thanksgiving weekend and Christmas week. Everything is dependent on how many skilled trades we can get to work and time needed to complete the different aspects of the work. Maintenance personnel are still putting the plan together based on the teams developing each of their scopes of work.
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
State of the Union November 1, 2011
Oct. 31, 2011 online at www.uawlocal2250.com
Here is the latest communication from National Labor Relations regarding entry-level pay raises: “Pay increases for Entry Level employees as provided for in the 2011 UAW-GM National Agreement will be implemented effective October 31, 2011. Eligible employees will see the wage rate change in their pay check dated November 11, 2011. Additional communication is forthcoming regarding the date of a retroactive payment that will include the wage differential due from the date of ratification (September 28. 2011) through October 30, 2011.”
There will be a Recreation Committee meeting this Wednesday, Nov. 2, 15 minutes after the longest first shift line time at the Union Hall. Plans will be finalized for the Christmas Dance and Santa’s visit. Anyone wishing to become a member of the committee is welcome to attend.
Here is this week’s build information: 26 E-26 vans; 231 slider doors; 461 cutaways; 248 15-pass vans; 64 r/h door deletes; 56 diesels; 88 exports; 259 Onstar; 276 Penske; 194 AT&T cng vans; 634 Enterprise rent-a-car; 76.8% white vans.
From Wards Auto: Nissan’s NV large commercial van, which launched in the U.S. this spring, is struggling to gain ground. The vehicle, which is equipped with a V-6 or V-8 gasoline engine and offers standard- and high-roof configurations, had a 205 days’ supply at the end of September, second only to the defunct Dodge Viper’s 304 days of inventory, WardsAuto data shows. The leading players in the cargo-van part of the segment, the Ford Econoline and Chevrolet Express posted 73- and 69-day supplies, respectively, at the end of last month. The NV has exceeded 200 day’s supply in most months since its debut, with the exception of July (187) and August (195). Total NV sales through the year’s first nine months were 3,035, compared with 69,187 for the Econoline and 42,084 for the Express cargo vans. Nissan sold 24 NVs a day in September, compared with the Econoline’s 266 units, according to WardsAuto data. ”We have very high expectations for (our van), but realistically Nissan is not the leader in any (vehicle) segment,” Cristi Brown, NV senior marketing manager, told the media at a Detroit event for the van last year. (Well said, Cristi)
Honda reported a $788 million profit in the latest quarter, down 55% from the same period last year. That doesn’t sound too bad considering the fallout from the earthquake/tsunami disaster. But a closer look reveals that they lost money building and selling automobiles - $380 million to be exact. Profits came from motorcycles ($508 million) and financing ($559 million). Honda is not offering any estimates for next quarter or the fiscal year that ends March 2012 primarily because of the flooding in Thailand that is cutting global production - North American production is 50% of plan through Nov. 10 (all N.A. production will be shut down Nov. 11).
From Business Week: The northern Indiana factory where AM General once made H2 Hummers could be building plug-in, hybrid cargo vans under a deal with a startup company announced Friday. Anderson-based Bright Automotive said production of its Idea work van could start in 2013 or 2014 at AM General's Mishawaka factory. Up to 300 workers ultimately could be hired to build the van once production ramps up, chief operating officer Mike Donoughe told the South Bend Tribune. Bright Automotive is seeking a loan from the U.S. Department of Energy to finance the start of production, but last year received a $5 million investment from General Motors' venture capital arm. Donoughe said the company has been in the loan process for "quite a long time" but that he's confident the vehicle will be built. "I'd like to say I'm highly confident, otherwise we wouldn't be making an announcement like we are," Donoughe said. "We just have to keep moving forward and get the ball over the goal line and start creating jobs in St. Joseph County and the surrounding area that I think are highly needed." Bright announced plans in January to hire 200 employees for a new technical center in Rochester Hills, Mich., to develop the Idea van for the commercial market. Bright says the Idea van will be able to travel more than 30 miles in all-electric mode and get 35 miles per gallon in standard hybrid mode.
From Bloomberg: General Motors Co. will keep open until August 2012 the midsize pickup plant in Louisiana that it set for closure as part of a new four-year labor contract. The Shreveport, Louisiana, factory making Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon trucks will close Aug. 23, Kim Carpenter, a spokeswoman for Detroit-based GM, wrote in an e- mail today. The closure date is dependent on pickup orders by dealers and customers, she said. Shreveport is the only assembly plant that the automaker and United Auto Workers agreed would shut as part of their contract ratified Sept. 28.
From Automotive News: General Motors is on track to increase its U.S. market share in 2011 -- the first time that has happened in nine years. GM's share climbed by 1 percentage point in the first nine months of the year, from 19 percent to 20 percent. The last time GM gained share over a full calendar year was in 2002, when it added 0.3 percentage points. But when was the last time GM picked up at least 1 point in a single year? For that you have to go back to 1978, when its U.S. share grew 1.4 points to 46.3 percent -- roughly what the Detroit 3 command today. What drove GM's success back in 1978? It was the rip-roaring redesign of GM's mid-sized sedans: the Chevrolet Monte Carlo, Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme, Pontiac Grand Prix and Buick Regal.
Here is the latest communication from National Labor Relations regarding entry-level pay raises: “Pay increases for Entry Level employees as provided for in the 2011 UAW-GM National Agreement will be implemented effective October 31, 2011. Eligible employees will see the wage rate change in their pay check dated November 11, 2011. Additional communication is forthcoming regarding the date of a retroactive payment that will include the wage differential due from the date of ratification (September 28. 2011) through October 30, 2011.”
There will be a Recreation Committee meeting this Wednesday, Nov. 2, 15 minutes after the longest first shift line time at the Union Hall. Plans will be finalized for the Christmas Dance and Santa’s visit. Anyone wishing to become a member of the committee is welcome to attend.
Here is this week’s build information: 26 E-26 vans; 231 slider doors; 461 cutaways; 248 15-pass vans; 64 r/h door deletes; 56 diesels; 88 exports; 259 Onstar; 276 Penske; 194 AT&T cng vans; 634 Enterprise rent-a-car; 76.8% white vans.
From Wards Auto: Nissan’s NV large commercial van, which launched in the U.S. this spring, is struggling to gain ground. The vehicle, which is equipped with a V-6 or V-8 gasoline engine and offers standard- and high-roof configurations, had a 205 days’ supply at the end of September, second only to the defunct Dodge Viper’s 304 days of inventory, WardsAuto data shows. The leading players in the cargo-van part of the segment, the Ford Econoline and Chevrolet Express posted 73- and 69-day supplies, respectively, at the end of last month. The NV has exceeded 200 day’s supply in most months since its debut, with the exception of July (187) and August (195). Total NV sales through the year’s first nine months were 3,035, compared with 69,187 for the Econoline and 42,084 for the Express cargo vans. Nissan sold 24 NVs a day in September, compared with the Econoline’s 266 units, according to WardsAuto data. ”We have very high expectations for (our van), but realistically Nissan is not the leader in any (vehicle) segment,” Cristi Brown, NV senior marketing manager, told the media at a Detroit event for the van last year. (Well said, Cristi)
Honda reported a $788 million profit in the latest quarter, down 55% from the same period last year. That doesn’t sound too bad considering the fallout from the earthquake/tsunami disaster. But a closer look reveals that they lost money building and selling automobiles - $380 million to be exact. Profits came from motorcycles ($508 million) and financing ($559 million). Honda is not offering any estimates for next quarter or the fiscal year that ends March 2012 primarily because of the flooding in Thailand that is cutting global production - North American production is 50% of plan through Nov. 10 (all N.A. production will be shut down Nov. 11).
From Business Week: The northern Indiana factory where AM General once made H2 Hummers could be building plug-in, hybrid cargo vans under a deal with a startup company announced Friday. Anderson-based Bright Automotive said production of its Idea work van could start in 2013 or 2014 at AM General's Mishawaka factory. Up to 300 workers ultimately could be hired to build the van once production ramps up, chief operating officer Mike Donoughe told the South Bend Tribune. Bright Automotive is seeking a loan from the U.S. Department of Energy to finance the start of production, but last year received a $5 million investment from General Motors' venture capital arm. Donoughe said the company has been in the loan process for "quite a long time" but that he's confident the vehicle will be built. "I'd like to say I'm highly confident, otherwise we wouldn't be making an announcement like we are," Donoughe said. "We just have to keep moving forward and get the ball over the goal line and start creating jobs in St. Joseph County and the surrounding area that I think are highly needed." Bright announced plans in January to hire 200 employees for a new technical center in Rochester Hills, Mich., to develop the Idea van for the commercial market. Bright says the Idea van will be able to travel more than 30 miles in all-electric mode and get 35 miles per gallon in standard hybrid mode.
From Bloomberg: General Motors Co. will keep open until August 2012 the midsize pickup plant in Louisiana that it set for closure as part of a new four-year labor contract. The Shreveport, Louisiana, factory making Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon trucks will close Aug. 23, Kim Carpenter, a spokeswoman for Detroit-based GM, wrote in an e- mail today. The closure date is dependent on pickup orders by dealers and customers, she said. Shreveport is the only assembly plant that the automaker and United Auto Workers agreed would shut as part of their contract ratified Sept. 28.
From Automotive News: General Motors is on track to increase its U.S. market share in 2011 -- the first time that has happened in nine years. GM's share climbed by 1 percentage point in the first nine months of the year, from 19 percent to 20 percent. The last time GM gained share over a full calendar year was in 2002, when it added 0.3 percentage points. But when was the last time GM picked up at least 1 point in a single year? For that you have to go back to 1978, when its U.S. share grew 1.4 points to 46.3 percent -- roughly what the Detroit 3 command today. What drove GM's success back in 1978? It was the rip-roaring redesign of GM's mid-sized sedans: the Chevrolet Monte Carlo, Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme, Pontiac Grand Prix and Buick Regal.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)