Jan. 25, 2012 online at www.uawlocal2250.com
Anyone who has unused vacation hours will be paid according to the National Agreement, which states: “Payment of the unused portion, if any, of the employee’s vacation entitlement shall be made as soon as possible but not later than February 1 of the following year.” What about profit sharing? As of the end of the 3rd quarter, GM North America had earned $5.7 billion, which equates to $5700 in profit sharing. At that time, GM issued guidance for the 4th quarter that said they expected earnings to be basically the same as last year, which was $800 million for North America. If that’s the case, the total profit share for 2011 would be $6500. There has been no word on whether the 10% diversion of profit share to the VEBA has been approved. GM is expected to announce 2011 earnings the 2nd week of February. Profit shares are paid out the second week of March.
The Education Committee is having a raffle to raise funds for educational literature for Union members. The prize is a large his and hers gift basket and ticket prices are $5 apiece or 3 for $10 and can be bought from any committee member. The raffle will be held Feb. 18.
From Automotive News: General Motors and Volkswagen produced seven of China's ten best-selling passenger vehicles last year, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers. General Motors Co.'s Buick Excelle ranked first with sales of 254,000 units. The Chevrolet Cruze placed third and the Chevrolet New Sail ranked seventh. Volkswagen's Lavida, Jetta, Bora and Santana ranked second, fourth, fifth and sixth, respectively. China FAW Group's Xiali, the Hyundai Elantra Yuedong and the Ford Focus ranked eighth, ninth and tenth. The ten passenger models, all compact cars, generated sales of 2.1 million units in 2011. In China, the overall top sellers are commercial microvans. The Wuling Sunshine, produced by SAIC-GM-Wuling, generated sales of 731,700 units, according to LMC Automotive. Three other commercial microvans also outsold the Excelle
From the New York Times: General Motors, in another effort to cut costs, is consolidating most of an important advertising assignment known as media planning and buying, after pitting four giant media agencies against each other for the task. Carat, part of the Aegis Media unit of the Aegis Group, on Tuesday morning was named to handle media operations for G.M. in almost all parts of the world. The assignment includes traditional, digital and social media. General Motors spends $3 billion each year on ads, and the assignment involves figuring out where the ads will run and how much to pay for them. G.M. has until now had those duties assigned on a regional basis and was using three media agencies, including Carat.
From the Wall Street Journal: Big auto makers and their suppliers are spending billions to expand and retool U.S. factories, pushing heartland states to jockey to land new auto jobs. Executives say the industry's U-turn from bankruptcy filings and layoffs to hirings and capital spending is driven by rising demand and a new view of manufacturing in the U.S. as a way to guard against volatile currency markets and other risks. Auto-industry employment in the U.S. is predicted to jump to 756,800 in 2015 from 566,400 in 2010, with most of that increase in Michigan, according to the Center for Automotive Research in Ann Arbor, Mich. While that falls well short of the 1.1 million workers employed in the sector in 1999, it indicates the hemorrhaging has been stanched. The center also said major auto companies indicate they expect to increase capital spending in the next few years. "It's a generational opportunity," says Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon, a Democrat, who has taken a high profile in his pursuit of car-company jobs. Mr. Nixon called Missouri's legislature into a special session last year to pass a bill offering new tax breaks to manufacturers, and earlier this month he visited the North American International Auto Show in Detroit. That effort shows signs of paying off. Ford Motor Co. said it plans to spend $1.1 billion to retool a plant near Kansas City, adding 1,600 jobs, and General Motors Co. has said it would spend about $380 million to refit its Wentzville, Mo., plant to build midsize pickups. "Everything we get as an incentive from that state…is a very important part of the decision," says Mark Reuss, head of GM's North American operations. The buoyant auto industry is helping to boost the Midwest hiring outlook. A report from staffing company ManpowerGroup estimated a net 10% of Midwest employers plan to hire in the first quarter, after factoring in companies that said they would cut jobs. That slightly surpasses the Northeast, South and West and the national forecast of 9% and is the strongest result for the Midwest since the third quarter of 2008. GM once pushed suppliers to shift operations to low-wage countries. Now, the company is encouraging parts makers that supply its U.S. operations to locate "as close to the plant as they can," Mr. Reuss said. (And here is the picture that ran with the article on page 3 of the first section of Monday’s paper)
Companies that need money to pay for ongoing expenses, such as employees or suppliers, can really benefit from invoice financing. Invoice financing will streamline cash flow and help you meet ongoing obligations. However, companies that need the funds to purchase equipment or to buy real estate will usually not benefit much from factoring.
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