June 27, 2011 online at www.uawlocal2250.com
In case you were wondering about the lack of JD Power about our van, there is a simple answer – there isn’t any. With passenger vans being the only version that would be sampled, it’s been decided that there just isn’t enough volume to do a statistically valid summary. That said, we do have one good measuring stick in our tool box – warranty data. Being a predominantly commercial vehicle, once again it is a struggle to get an apples-to-apples comparison within GM. But heavy duty versions of the pickups made at Flint and Ft. Wayne have incidents per thousand vehicles 4 to 5 times higher than the van. And our warranty costs for two months in service are the lowest of any truck plant.
This week’s build information: 415 slider doors; 155 r/h door delete; 111 exports; 172 On-Star; 158 Enterprise rent-a-car; 203 diesels; 25 E-26; 106 brake deck spare tire; 127 15 passenger vans; 85.8% white vans; tan interior 1%.
From Automotive News: North American automakers are struggling with a nagging shortage of tires, caused in part by tire plant closings and rising demand for low-volume specialty tires. Automakers are paying much higher prices -- double-digit percentage increases from a year ago -- as tire makers gain pricing power. "We have been bombarded from every side for additional tires, and we can't keep up," said David O'Donnell, Continental Tire's vice president of original equipment in the Americas. "We are at maximum capacity, and all shifts are maxed out." To meet demand, Continental will expand plants in Illinois and Brazil and will build a factory somewhere in North America. But this will take time. The new lines in Illinois and Brazil won't hit full production until 2013, O'Donnell said. Continental is investing $224 million to expand its plant in Mount Vernon, Ill., plus $210 million to expand its plant in Camacari, Brazil. To make things worse, tire makers had been cutting back on North American production capacity before the recession. In 2006 and 2007 alone, four U.S. tire plants were closed, according to TheNew York Times. Plant closures eliminated about 71 million units of U.S. capacity, John Baratta, president of replacement tire sales for the United States and Canada at Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations, said in a June article in Automotive News' sister publication Tire Business. Meanwhile, tire manufacturers were opening factories in China that flooded the U.S. market with cheap tires. But in September 2009 the Obama administration slapped a three-year tariff on imported Chinese tires. The tax started at 35 percent of a tire's value declining to 30 percent and 25 percent in the second and third years. The import tax expires in September 2012.
From Cars.com: Despite stagnant sales, the Toyota Camry and Honda Accord remain atop this year's American-Made Index. Falling domestic parts content axed Ford's popular Escape and Focus, but the Dearborn, Mich., automaker's redesigned, Chicago-built Explorer hit the ground running and entered the list at fourth place. General Motors fielded three entrants — a feat not seen since the 2009 AMI — with the Chevrolet Malibu and two large crossovers, the Chevrolet Traverse and GMC Acadia. Honda's Odyssey returned for a second year running, moving up a spot to fifth. Toyota's Sienna minivan and Tundra pickup truck both returned this year, as did Chrysler's popular Jeep Wrangler. Detroit's full-size pickups, once a dominant force on the AMI, remain off the chart. The F-150 held a commanding No. 1 spot in the first three years that Cars.com compiled the index, with domestic parts content as high as 90 percent. Alas, today's Michigan- and Missouri-built F-150 bears only 60 percent domestic content rating. Similarly, the Chevrolet Silverado, which held second place for much of the F-150's reign, has just 61 percent domestic content. Chrysler's Ram 1500 pickup's 70 percent domestic content fares better, but it still falls short of the AMI's 75-percent cutoff. Of the top 50 best-selling models so far this year — a group that made up nearly two-thirds of all car sales — only 29 are assembled in part or in whole in the U.S. Others, from the Toyota Prius to the Chevy Equinox, come from elsewhere. What's more, a number of domestically assembled models, like the Alabama-built Hyundai Sonata and Michigan-built Ford Focus, rely heavily on global parts. That trend could continue. In the 2010 model year, the country's top 20 best-sellers averaged a domestic parts content rating of 62 percent. For the 2011 model year, the top 20 averaged 55 percent. Forthcoming models like the redesigned 2012 Ford Focus — a poster car for Ford's global One Ford strategy — have a domestic parts content rating of just 40 percent. Still, Detroit automakers build a majority of the nameplates with high domestic content. For the 2011 model year, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports 37 models have domestic parts content of 75 percent or higher. Twenty-eight of them are from a Detroit-based brand. A year ago, Detroit brands were responsible for 35 of the 47 models rated 75 percent or higher. In 2010, Automotive News reported that the U.S. auto industry produced some 4.4 million cars from U.S. nameplates in the two neighboring countries. That's a sizable number, given the same industry built nearly 8 million passenger vehicles in the U.S. over the same period. It's cheaper to build in Mexico, and thanks to 1994's North American Free Trade Agreement, it comes with little penalty. Labor rates account for less than 10 percent of overall vehicle cost, Fini says. But within that, the difference is significant. In 2010, Canadian autoworkers averaged $38.77 an hour in U.S. dollars, including benefits. Their U.S. counterparts averaged $33.46. Mexican autoworkers, in contrast, made just $3.75 an hour, IHS Automotive found.
Monday, June 27, 2011
Thursday, June 23, 2011
State of the Union June 23, 2011
June 23, 2011 online at www.uawlocal2250.com
• Starting Monday, if you are still having difficulty completing the online referral process, you will be able to go to the Labor department at breaks and lunch for assistance. You will need your GMIN and password as well as the required information of the person you intend to refer.
• From the Chaplaincy Committee: Please help us pay tribute and honor to the Marines on Friday, June 24 at lunch time in the Chassis Chapel at column C-42. Come Marines and Armed Forces. All are welcome.
• From Automotive News: About 125 workers for a critical supplier inside the General Motors Orion Assembly Plant are taking a strike authorization vote today as a means of accelerating contract talks. The workers are employed by LINC Logistics Co. and agreed, by card check, to join the UAW early this spring. So far the UAW has been unable to negotiate a contract with LINC, said Pat Sweeney, president of UAW Local 5960. The local represents hourly workers at Orion and workers from the third-party parts suppliers operating there. The union is fighting for what it calls a "living wage" for LINC workers, who currently earn less than $10 an hour, the UAW's Sweeney said. "We want to get these negotiations behind us and launch this great product," Sweeney said. GM spokeswoman Kim Carpenter said the automaker does not expect the strike-authorization vote and UAW's negotiations with LINC to affect the Sonic launch.
• From the Detroit Free Press: The UAW has joined a global network of unions that represent Fiatand Chrysler workers across Europe, South America and in Canada, UAW President Bob King said Wednesday. The coalition, formed under the International Metalworkers' Federation, was created to share best practices on issues such as quality and safety. They also intend to work together on broader social issues such as protecting collective bargaining and human rights. "Individual unions still have the responsibility for their individual contracts," King said in an interview with reporters from Turin, Italy. "We've always had a policy that if you sell carsin a country, you should build cars there.” King said the network of unions has sent a letter to Fiat and ChryslerCEO Sergio Marchionne asking him to recognize the new coalition. "All the unions will be helped by better dialogue, better information-sharing and by forming a global platform to discuss common issues," King said. The UAW formed a similar coalition with unions that represent Ford and GM workers globally and has asked those automakers for recognition, King said.
• From Bloomberg: The UAW is trying to hold its first successful organizing drive at a foreign-car factory in the U.S. To succeed, the union has to convince people like Rocky Long. "I don't see any problems here. I don't see how they could help me out," said Long, who's worked at the Hyundai assembly plant in Montgomery, Ala., for five years. Of the union representatives who came to his home this year, he said, "I really didn't give them the time of day." UAW President Bob King has pledged to organize a foreign automaker this year to expand the union's bargaining power beyond the U.S. companies it has negotiated with for seven decades. King hasn't said which automaker he's trying to organize. Hyundai's lower wages and benefits have given it labor costs of about $44 to $48 an hour, compared with $52 an hour at Toyota's U.S. plants and about $58 an hour at the U.S. factories of General Motors, Ford and Chrysler, according to Sean McAlinden, chief economist with the Center for Automotive Research in Ann Arbor (Hyundai officials declined to speak about specific pay). Wanda Carter, a Hyundai hourly worker, said she doesn't see a need for a union at the Alabama plant. "Hyundai does the best they can do to work with the Hyundai employees," said Carter, who declined to give her age. She wasn't alone. Workers at another potential UAW target, Volkswagen's new plant in Chattanooga, Tenn., said they were excited just to have a job in the auto industry. There isn't any talk of forming a union, said Terry Young, a line worker. "You don't want to look a gift horse in the mouth," said Young, 34.
• From the Wall Street Journal: The National Labor Relations Board Tuesday proposed the most sweeping changes to the federal rules governing union organizing elections since 1947, giving a boost to unions that have long called for the agency to give employers less time to fight representation votes. The NLRB's proposals would likely compress the time between a formal call for a vote by workers on whether to join a union, and the election itself. Some companies say cutting the lead time before an election would make it harder for them to build a case for opposing a union, because union campaigns often begin months earlier without an employer's knowledge. Unions praised the proposal, although Richard Trumka, president of the AFL-CIO, called the board's step a "modest" one that doesn't address "many of the fundamental problems with our labor laws." Even with more favorable rules, unions could face challenges winning contested elections at a time when even union officials say many workers are more concerned about their own job security. Unions have tried and failed for years to organize workers at Wal-Mart Stores Inc., Target Corp. and the U.S. operations of big foreign-owned auto makers, among others. On Friday, the United Food and Commercial Workers union lost an election 85-137 at a Target store in Valley Stream, N.Y. The cost of organizing efforts has led unions to seek fewer votes. Last year, unions won 1,036, or 66%, of 1,571 elections conducted by the NLRB, according to the agency. In 1990, unions called for 3,536 elections and won 1,773, or 50%.
• Starting Monday, if you are still having difficulty completing the online referral process, you will be able to go to the Labor department at breaks and lunch for assistance. You will need your GMIN and password as well as the required information of the person you intend to refer.
• From the Chaplaincy Committee: Please help us pay tribute and honor to the Marines on Friday, June 24 at lunch time in the Chassis Chapel at column C-42. Come Marines and Armed Forces. All are welcome.
• From Automotive News: About 125 workers for a critical supplier inside the General Motors Orion Assembly Plant are taking a strike authorization vote today as a means of accelerating contract talks. The workers are employed by LINC Logistics Co. and agreed, by card check, to join the UAW early this spring. So far the UAW has been unable to negotiate a contract with LINC, said Pat Sweeney, president of UAW Local 5960. The local represents hourly workers at Orion and workers from the third-party parts suppliers operating there. The union is fighting for what it calls a "living wage" for LINC workers, who currently earn less than $10 an hour, the UAW's Sweeney said. "We want to get these negotiations behind us and launch this great product," Sweeney said. GM spokeswoman Kim Carpenter said the automaker does not expect the strike-authorization vote and UAW's negotiations with LINC to affect the Sonic launch.
• From the Detroit Free Press: The UAW has joined a global network of unions that represent Fiatand Chrysler workers across Europe, South America and in Canada, UAW President Bob King said Wednesday. The coalition, formed under the International Metalworkers' Federation, was created to share best practices on issues such as quality and safety. They also intend to work together on broader social issues such as protecting collective bargaining and human rights. "Individual unions still have the responsibility for their individual contracts," King said in an interview with reporters from Turin, Italy. "We've always had a policy that if you sell carsin a country, you should build cars there.” King said the network of unions has sent a letter to Fiat and ChryslerCEO Sergio Marchionne asking him to recognize the new coalition. "All the unions will be helped by better dialogue, better information-sharing and by forming a global platform to discuss common issues," King said. The UAW formed a similar coalition with unions that represent Ford and GM workers globally and has asked those automakers for recognition, King said.
• From Bloomberg: The UAW is trying to hold its first successful organizing drive at a foreign-car factory in the U.S. To succeed, the union has to convince people like Rocky Long. "I don't see any problems here. I don't see how they could help me out," said Long, who's worked at the Hyundai assembly plant in Montgomery, Ala., for five years. Of the union representatives who came to his home this year, he said, "I really didn't give them the time of day." UAW President Bob King has pledged to organize a foreign automaker this year to expand the union's bargaining power beyond the U.S. companies it has negotiated with for seven decades. King hasn't said which automaker he's trying to organize. Hyundai's lower wages and benefits have given it labor costs of about $44 to $48 an hour, compared with $52 an hour at Toyota's U.S. plants and about $58 an hour at the U.S. factories of General Motors, Ford and Chrysler, according to Sean McAlinden, chief economist with the Center for Automotive Research in Ann Arbor (Hyundai officials declined to speak about specific pay). Wanda Carter, a Hyundai hourly worker, said she doesn't see a need for a union at the Alabama plant. "Hyundai does the best they can do to work with the Hyundai employees," said Carter, who declined to give her age. She wasn't alone. Workers at another potential UAW target, Volkswagen's new plant in Chattanooga, Tenn., said they were excited just to have a job in the auto industry. There isn't any talk of forming a union, said Terry Young, a line worker. "You don't want to look a gift horse in the mouth," said Young, 34.
• From the Wall Street Journal: The National Labor Relations Board Tuesday proposed the most sweeping changes to the federal rules governing union organizing elections since 1947, giving a boost to unions that have long called for the agency to give employers less time to fight representation votes. The NLRB's proposals would likely compress the time between a formal call for a vote by workers on whether to join a union, and the election itself. Some companies say cutting the lead time before an election would make it harder for them to build a case for opposing a union, because union campaigns often begin months earlier without an employer's knowledge. Unions praised the proposal, although Richard Trumka, president of the AFL-CIO, called the board's step a "modest" one that doesn't address "many of the fundamental problems with our labor laws." Even with more favorable rules, unions could face challenges winning contested elections at a time when even union officials say many workers are more concerned about their own job security. Unions have tried and failed for years to organize workers at Wal-Mart Stores Inc., Target Corp. and the U.S. operations of big foreign-owned auto makers, among others. On Friday, the United Food and Commercial Workers union lost an election 85-137 at a Target store in Valley Stream, N.Y. The cost of organizing efforts has led unions to seek fewer votes. Last year, unions won 1,036, or 66%, of 1,571 elections conducted by the NLRB, according to the agency. In 1990, unions called for 3,536 elections and won 1,773, or 50%.
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
State of the Union June 21, 2011
June 21, 2011 online at www.uawlocal2250.com
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GM Payroll Services has successfully implemented ADP iPayStatements at https://ipay.adp.comas the new host for employee paystub information for GM employees paid by Payroll Services in the United States (including ISP paid from the US Payroll Systems). ADP iPayStatements gives you access to your paystub 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, without the need to log into mySocrates. The paystub view previously accessed via Socrates is no longer available. Please note there will be no change to the way your payroll is processed.
ACTION REQUIRED:
The first time you access the site you will need to complete a registration process. If you are an hourly employee, step by step Self Service Registration Instructions were mailed to your address on record, including the Registration Pass Code GM1-Payrequired for registration.
TIPS FOR A SUCCESSFUL REGISTRATION:
Open a new internet explorer browser window when registering.
GM1-Pay is the only registration code for GM.
If you get a message that says the registration code is not good, close
the window completely, open a new window and try the pass code again.
If you have questions or need assistance with registering please call one of these numbers for assistance: Hourly Payroll Center: 866-245-5957
In spite of high gas prices, last month Americans bought more muscle cars (19,476) -- Mustang, Challenger and Camaro -- than hybrids (17,852). Camaro sales (9,451) led Mustang (6,607) and Challenger (3,418) in May, as they have for the entire year. The hybrid share of U.S. auto sales peaked at 3.6% in July, 2009,Edmunds.com says. Last month, it was 1.6%, depressed also by production cuts for some models due to the Japan disaster, but not enough to account for all the drop. The new conventionally powered cars use various strategies to boost gas mileage to near hybrid levels — without the batteries and electric motors that can add $6,000 on average to a vehicle's cost, according to J.D. Power and Associates. "Even with the fuel savings, it doesn't make sense to buy a hybrid" for many buyers, says Power Senior Manager Mike Omotoso. "This year, we had $4 gas (in many cities) but we saw the introduction of compacts that get 40 mpg. All of these cars are considerably cheaper than hybrids."
Wisconsin’s conservative high court green-lights anti-worker bill
06/20/11
With lightening speed, the Wisconsin Supreme Court decided to let stand Gov. Scott Walker’s budget repair bill that takes away public workers’ collective bargaining rights.
The June 14 ruling, issued the same day the case was considered by the justices, tracks the court’s 4-3 conservative majority and overturns a lower court decision that halted implementation of the anti-union, anti-middle class budget bill.
In May, Dane County Circuit Judge Maryann Sumi ruledthat in passing the governor’s budget bill – which includes a measure stripping teachers, nurses and all other public employees (except police and firefighters who supported Walker’s 2010 election) of their bargaining rights – the Republican-controlled legislature violated the state’s open meeting law, and issued a permanent injunction against the bill.
The majority justices found GOP legislators did not violate the constitutional provision that states “all meetings of all state and local governmental bodies shall be publicly held in places reasonably accessible to members of the public and shall be open to all citizens at all times unless otherwise expressly provided by law.”
In her dissenting opinion (pg.37), Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson said the majority justices "make their own findings of fact, mischaracterize the parties' arguments, misinterpret statutes, minimize (if not eliminate) Wisconsin constitutional guarantees, and misstate case law, appearing to silently overrule case law dating back to at least 1891.”
Hundreds of thousands of Wisconsinites have been protesting at the state Capitol since the budget bill was first introduced in February, and opponents have vowed to fight on. To that end, on June 15 a broad coalition of Wisconsin unions filed a federal lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin. The suit charges that the budget repair bill violates the First and Fourteenth Amendments of the U.S. Constitution by stripping away basic rights from most Wisconsin public sector employees to bargain, organize and associate to engage in union and political activity.
UAW Region 4 Director Ron McInroy said the Wisconsin Supreme Court decision has more to do with partisan politics than upholding the law. “They are basically sending the message that Governor Walker and the Republicans in the Statehouse can do whatever they want because the rule of law doesn’t apply to them,” McInroy said.
“But the people of Wisconsin who work hard and play by the rules will not be silenced,” he said. “They will have the final say by voting against the Republicans facing recall elections because of their extreme anti-worker, pro-wealthy votes.” Recall elections for six Republican senators will take place July 12.
http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif
GM Payroll Services has successfully implemented ADP iPayStatements at https://ipay.adp.comas the new host for employee paystub information for GM employees paid by Payroll Services in the United States (including ISP paid from the US Payroll Systems). ADP iPayStatements gives you access to your paystub 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, without the need to log into mySocrates. The paystub view previously accessed via Socrates is no longer available. Please note there will be no change to the way your payroll is processed.
ACTION REQUIRED:
The first time you access the site you will need to complete a registration process. If you are an hourly employee, step by step Self Service Registration Instructions were mailed to your address on record, including the Registration Pass Code GM1-Payrequired for registration.
TIPS FOR A SUCCESSFUL REGISTRATION:
Open a new internet explorer browser window when registering.
GM1-Pay is the only registration code for GM.
If you get a message that says the registration code is not good, close
the window completely, open a new window and try the pass code again.
If you have questions or need assistance with registering please call one of these numbers for assistance: Hourly Payroll Center: 866-245-5957
In spite of high gas prices, last month Americans bought more muscle cars (19,476) -- Mustang, Challenger and Camaro -- than hybrids (17,852). Camaro sales (9,451) led Mustang (6,607) and Challenger (3,418) in May, as they have for the entire year. The hybrid share of U.S. auto sales peaked at 3.6% in July, 2009,Edmunds.com says. Last month, it was 1.6%, depressed also by production cuts for some models due to the Japan disaster, but not enough to account for all the drop. The new conventionally powered cars use various strategies to boost gas mileage to near hybrid levels — without the batteries and electric motors that can add $6,000 on average to a vehicle's cost, according to J.D. Power and Associates. "Even with the fuel savings, it doesn't make sense to buy a hybrid" for many buyers, says Power Senior Manager Mike Omotoso. "This year, we had $4 gas (in many cities) but we saw the introduction of compacts that get 40 mpg. All of these cars are considerably cheaper than hybrids."
Wisconsin’s conservative high court green-lights anti-worker bill
06/20/11
With lightening speed, the Wisconsin Supreme Court decided to let stand Gov. Scott Walker’s budget repair bill that takes away public workers’ collective bargaining rights.
The June 14 ruling, issued the same day the case was considered by the justices, tracks the court’s 4-3 conservative majority and overturns a lower court decision that halted implementation of the anti-union, anti-middle class budget bill.
In May, Dane County Circuit Judge Maryann Sumi ruledthat in passing the governor’s budget bill – which includes a measure stripping teachers, nurses and all other public employees (except police and firefighters who supported Walker’s 2010 election) of their bargaining rights – the Republican-controlled legislature violated the state’s open meeting law, and issued a permanent injunction against the bill.
The majority justices found GOP legislators did not violate the constitutional provision that states “all meetings of all state and local governmental bodies shall be publicly held in places reasonably accessible to members of the public and shall be open to all citizens at all times unless otherwise expressly provided by law.”
In her dissenting opinion (pg.37), Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson said the majority justices "make their own findings of fact, mischaracterize the parties' arguments, misinterpret statutes, minimize (if not eliminate) Wisconsin constitutional guarantees, and misstate case law, appearing to silently overrule case law dating back to at least 1891.”
Hundreds of thousands of Wisconsinites have been protesting at the state Capitol since the budget bill was first introduced in February, and opponents have vowed to fight on. To that end, on June 15 a broad coalition of Wisconsin unions filed a federal lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin. The suit charges that the budget repair bill violates the First and Fourteenth Amendments of the U.S. Constitution by stripping away basic rights from most Wisconsin public sector employees to bargain, organize and associate to engage in union and political activity.
UAW Region 4 Director Ron McInroy said the Wisconsin Supreme Court decision has more to do with partisan politics than upholding the law. “They are basically sending the message that Governor Walker and the Republicans in the Statehouse can do whatever they want because the rule of law doesn’t apply to them,” McInroy said.
“But the people of Wisconsin who work hard and play by the rules will not be silenced,” he said. “They will have the final say by voting against the Republicans facing recall elections because of their extreme anti-worker, pro-wealthy votes.” Recall elections for six Republican senators will take place July 12.
Monday, June 20, 2011
State of the Union June 20, 2011
June 20, 2011 online at www.uawlocal2250.com
Corrections: Tuesday, June 21 is the deadline to withdraw your application regarding the 63B transfers to either body shop (4 temporary openings) or material (1 opening) if you do not want to accept the transfer. Also, the SUB pay provisions for entry level employees were amended in the 2009 agreement. It is now 13 weeks of SUB for employees with 1 to 3 years seniority and 26 weeks for those with 3 or more years seniority.
If you are having trouble with the online referral screen, you may need to disable the popup blockerhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif of your web browser. If popups are not enabled, at least for that website, you will not be able to continue.
This week’s build information: 54 E-26; 308 slider doors; 148 15-passenger vans; 119 exports; 232 On-star; 350 r/h door delete; 212 diesels; 42 government vans; 80 Enterprise rent-a-car; 78% white vans.
Additional need for Ecotec four-cylinder engines used in Chevrolet’s fuel-efficient cars and crossovers, including the all-new 2013 Malibu, is driving $65 million in new investment at plants in New York and Tennessee that will create or retain 163 jobs. In Tonawanda, N.Y., additional capacity is being added for engines used in the Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain crossovers. In Spring Hill, Tenn., the engine plant is adding capacity for direct-injection four-cylinder engines to support the acceleration of the 2013 Chevrolet Malibu. GM Is investing $32 million that will create or retain 63 positions.
From the Detroit Free Press: General Motors will idle U.S. truck plants for two weeks in July as it pares inventory of pickups and prepares the factories for output of 2012 model-year vehicles. GM's Flint assembly in Michigan will shut down for the weeks of July 4 and July 11, said Tom Wickham, a GM spokesman. Production at Ft. Wayne assembly in Roanoke, Ind., also will stop during those weeks, said Orval Plumlee, president of UAW Local 2209, which represents hourly workers among the factory's more than 3,300 employees. The two plants make Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra pickups. GM's truck inventory was 288,000 vehicles at the end of May, up from 275,000 on April 30.
From the Cleveland Plain Dealer: In Avon Lake, UAW Local 2000 President Tim Donovan declined to discuss goals for this year's contract, saying only that he's going to focus on saving the plant's nearly 1,800 jobs. That plant makes E-Series commercial vans, a highly profitable line for Ford. Employment in Avon Lake has slipped steadily over the past few years as commercial vehicle sales fell during the recession. Sales are up this year, but they're only about half of what they were in better times. In 2007, Ford promised to build a new body shop at Avon Lakeand bring a new product line to the plant. But the contract allowed the company to back out when the economy collapsed. Analysts believe that Ford will either slow production of the E-Series or cut it entirely within the next few years as new fuel-economy requirements make it tougher to sell vehicles powered by massive V-8 and V-10 engines. Instead, they expect it to bring Europe's more fuel-efficient Transit van to this country. Winning the Transit or some other vehicle would guarantee future work in Avon Lake. (FYI – this plant will have a 2-week shutdown in July on top of the week of downtime they had the first week of June)
Corrections: Tuesday, June 21 is the deadline to withdraw your application regarding the 63B transfers to either body shop (4 temporary openings) or material (1 opening) if you do not want to accept the transfer. Also, the SUB pay provisions for entry level employees were amended in the 2009 agreement. It is now 13 weeks of SUB for employees with 1 to 3 years seniority and 26 weeks for those with 3 or more years seniority.
If you are having trouble with the online referral screen, you may need to disable the popup blockerhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif of your web browser. If popups are not enabled, at least for that website, you will not be able to continue.
This week’s build information: 54 E-26; 308 slider doors; 148 15-passenger vans; 119 exports; 232 On-star; 350 r/h door delete; 212 diesels; 42 government vans; 80 Enterprise rent-a-car; 78% white vans.
Additional need for Ecotec four-cylinder engines used in Chevrolet’s fuel-efficient cars and crossovers, including the all-new 2013 Malibu, is driving $65 million in new investment at plants in New York and Tennessee that will create or retain 163 jobs. In Tonawanda, N.Y., additional capacity is being added for engines used in the Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain crossovers. In Spring Hill, Tenn., the engine plant is adding capacity for direct-injection four-cylinder engines to support the acceleration of the 2013 Chevrolet Malibu. GM Is investing $32 million that will create or retain 63 positions.
From the Detroit Free Press: General Motors will idle U.S. truck plants for two weeks in July as it pares inventory of pickups and prepares the factories for output of 2012 model-year vehicles. GM's Flint assembly in Michigan will shut down for the weeks of July 4 and July 11, said Tom Wickham, a GM spokesman. Production at Ft. Wayne assembly in Roanoke, Ind., also will stop during those weeks, said Orval Plumlee, president of UAW Local 2209, which represents hourly workers among the factory's more than 3,300 employees. The two plants make Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra pickups. GM's truck inventory was 288,000 vehicles at the end of May, up from 275,000 on April 30.
From the Cleveland Plain Dealer: In Avon Lake, UAW Local 2000 President Tim Donovan declined to discuss goals for this year's contract, saying only that he's going to focus on saving the plant's nearly 1,800 jobs. That plant makes E-Series commercial vans, a highly profitable line for Ford. Employment in Avon Lake has slipped steadily over the past few years as commercial vehicle sales fell during the recession. Sales are up this year, but they're only about half of what they were in better times. In 2007, Ford promised to build a new body shop at Avon Lakeand bring a new product line to the plant. But the contract allowed the company to back out when the economy collapsed. Analysts believe that Ford will either slow production of the E-Series or cut it entirely within the next few years as new fuel-economy requirements make it tougher to sell vehicles powered by massive V-8 and V-10 engines. Instead, they expect it to bring Europe's more fuel-efficient Transit van to this country. Winning the Transit or some other vehicle would guarantee future work in Avon Lake. (FYI – this plant will have a 2-week shutdown in July on top of the week of downtime they had the first week of June)
Friday, June 17, 2011
State of the Union June 17,2011
June 17, 2011 online at www.uawlocal2250.com
There are temporary 63B openings in body shop and material – 4 each – to cover sick leaves. The application period expires Tuesday, June 21. Check the entrances for more information.
Wentzville Assembly will be donating a van for the 4th of July parade here in Wentzville. Call President Van Simpson at the Union Hall (327-5796) if you wish to participate.
From the Chaplaincy Committee: To all GM and Facility/Support Group Fathers – Have a Happy and Blessed Fathers Day this Sunday!
Now that referrals are being accepted, there have been some questions about the wages and benefits new entry level employees receive. Starting pay is $14.65 per hour and goes up to $16.28 after 130 weeks. They will get health care coverage in the 8th month of employment and dental coverage after 3 years. Vision coverage for eye exams also kicks in at 3 years and glasses are covered after 5 years. There is a personal retirement plan that provides contributions equal to 6.4% of their hourly rate mulitplied by the number of straight time hours to each employee’s account. They are also eligible for SUB – 26 weeks with 1to 3 years seniority and 52 weeks for 3 or more years seniority and could go an additional 104 weeks after that is exhausted. There is more information in the National Agreement beginning on page 277.
From Automotive News: Citing a market focused on fuel economy, Ford made the surprise announcement last week that next year it will introduce the Focus C-Max hybrid and the C-Max Energi plug-in hybrid. Both vehicles are five-door hatchbacks. The seven-passenger minivan, announced last year for sale in 2012 and also sharing the C-Max name, will not be sold in the United States, Ford said. Besides a concern about fuel economy, an insider said the expected sticker price, estimated around $24,000 to $25,000, would put it head-to-head with the larger Dodge Grand Caravan. The business case was shaky at best. But Ford still has an option on the table: the Transit Connect. The understanding is that the next-gen Transit Connect that arrives in a few years will be assembled in North America (no word on where) and will be a more refined vehicle. The current version comes from Turkey.
The suggested retail price of the all-new 2012 Chevrolet Sonic begins at $14,495 including destination but excludes tax, title, license and dealer fees. Sonic comes with the most standard safety equipment in the sub-compact class, including 10 air bags. Air conditioning, power door locks, remote keyless entry and 15" alloy wheels also are standard. The Sonic, the only sub-compact built in the United States (Lake Orion, Local 5960), is expected to deliver 40 mpg highway with class-leading acceleration when paired with the 1.4L Turbo and six-speed manual transmission. The Sonic is offered in two body styles: a four-door sedan and a five-door hatchback.
From CNNMoney: It's still only a trickle compared to the flood of jobs that America lost to overseas outsourcing in recent decades. But some American businesses are bringing jobs home again. In Louisville, a closed General Electric appliance plant is being renovated to begin producing refrigerators and water heaters now being made overseas. Hiring of about 1,300 union-represented workers is due to begin this fall. A technical support call center for computer back-up firm Carbonite will start taking calls this summer in Lewiston, Maine. By the end of this year, 150 jobs that had been located in India will be shifted to there, with another 100 jobs expected to be added next year. NCR has already hired about 500 workers to build ATM machines and self-service checkout systems at a Columbus, Ga., plant, and it plans to add another 370 jobs by 2014, building products that were formerly produced at plants in China, Hungary and Brazil. For GE, the decision to reopen the Louisville plant, which had been closed for decades, was based on the fact that it's no longer as expensive to hire more workers in the U.S. Jim Campbell, president and CEO of the GE Appliance and Lighting unit, said that when you factor in currency fluctuations and rising wages in emerging markets, "when we look out five to six years, the United States is becoming a lot more attractive." Greater quality was the major factor cited by Carbonite for moving back jobs to the U.S. as well. The company's call center in New Delhi, India was having turnover of 100% or more each year, said Tom Murray, the company's vice president of marketing. Peter Dorsman, the senior vice president of Global Operations at NCR said when NCR looked at the cost of shipping products that weigh more than a ton each, as well as the need to have the plant close to the engineering staff and customers in order to constantly improve the machines, it decided to build the Georgia plant.
Just days after Mazda announced they were abandoning production of the Mazda 6 midsize sedan at a joint venture plant with Ford (Mustang) in Flat Rock, Michigan (UAW Local 3000) comes word that they will build a new $500 million plant in Mexico to produce the sedan along with the Mazda 2 subcompact and Mazda 3 compact cars. Capacity will be 140,000 units and will eventually employ 3000 workers. Ford has not divulged their plans for the Flat Rock facility, but with Mustang sales around 75,000 annually, clearly something has to change.
There are temporary 63B openings in body shop and material – 4 each – to cover sick leaves. The application period expires Tuesday, June 21. Check the entrances for more information.
Wentzville Assembly will be donating a van for the 4th of July parade here in Wentzville. Call President Van Simpson at the Union Hall (327-5796) if you wish to participate.
From the Chaplaincy Committee: To all GM and Facility/Support Group Fathers – Have a Happy and Blessed Fathers Day this Sunday!
Now that referrals are being accepted, there have been some questions about the wages and benefits new entry level employees receive. Starting pay is $14.65 per hour and goes up to $16.28 after 130 weeks. They will get health care coverage in the 8th month of employment and dental coverage after 3 years. Vision coverage for eye exams also kicks in at 3 years and glasses are covered after 5 years. There is a personal retirement plan that provides contributions equal to 6.4% of their hourly rate mulitplied by the number of straight time hours to each employee’s account. They are also eligible for SUB – 26 weeks with 1to 3 years seniority and 52 weeks for 3 or more years seniority and could go an additional 104 weeks after that is exhausted. There is more information in the National Agreement beginning on page 277.
From Automotive News: Citing a market focused on fuel economy, Ford made the surprise announcement last week that next year it will introduce the Focus C-Max hybrid and the C-Max Energi plug-in hybrid. Both vehicles are five-door hatchbacks. The seven-passenger minivan, announced last year for sale in 2012 and also sharing the C-Max name, will not be sold in the United States, Ford said. Besides a concern about fuel economy, an insider said the expected sticker price, estimated around $24,000 to $25,000, would put it head-to-head with the larger Dodge Grand Caravan. The business case was shaky at best. But Ford still has an option on the table: the Transit Connect. The understanding is that the next-gen Transit Connect that arrives in a few years will be assembled in North America (no word on where) and will be a more refined vehicle. The current version comes from Turkey.
The suggested retail price of the all-new 2012 Chevrolet Sonic begins at $14,495 including destination but excludes tax, title, license and dealer fees. Sonic comes with the most standard safety equipment in the sub-compact class, including 10 air bags. Air conditioning, power door locks, remote keyless entry and 15" alloy wheels also are standard. The Sonic, the only sub-compact built in the United States (Lake Orion, Local 5960), is expected to deliver 40 mpg highway with class-leading acceleration when paired with the 1.4L Turbo and six-speed manual transmission. The Sonic is offered in two body styles: a four-door sedan and a five-door hatchback.
From CNNMoney: It's still only a trickle compared to the flood of jobs that America lost to overseas outsourcing in recent decades. But some American businesses are bringing jobs home again. In Louisville, a closed General Electric appliance plant is being renovated to begin producing refrigerators and water heaters now being made overseas. Hiring of about 1,300 union-represented workers is due to begin this fall. A technical support call center for computer back-up firm Carbonite will start taking calls this summer in Lewiston, Maine. By the end of this year, 150 jobs that had been located in India will be shifted to there, with another 100 jobs expected to be added next year. NCR has already hired about 500 workers to build ATM machines and self-service checkout systems at a Columbus, Ga., plant, and it plans to add another 370 jobs by 2014, building products that were formerly produced at plants in China, Hungary and Brazil. For GE, the decision to reopen the Louisville plant, which had been closed for decades, was based on the fact that it's no longer as expensive to hire more workers in the U.S. Jim Campbell, president and CEO of the GE Appliance and Lighting unit, said that when you factor in currency fluctuations and rising wages in emerging markets, "when we look out five to six years, the United States is becoming a lot more attractive." Greater quality was the major factor cited by Carbonite for moving back jobs to the U.S. as well. The company's call center in New Delhi, India was having turnover of 100% or more each year, said Tom Murray, the company's vice president of marketing. Peter Dorsman, the senior vice president of Global Operations at NCR said when NCR looked at the cost of shipping products that weigh more than a ton each, as well as the need to have the plant close to the engineering staff and customers in order to constantly improve the machines, it decided to build the Georgia plant.
Just days after Mazda announced they were abandoning production of the Mazda 6 midsize sedan at a joint venture plant with Ford (Mustang) in Flat Rock, Michigan (UAW Local 3000) comes word that they will build a new $500 million plant in Mexico to produce the sedan along with the Mazda 2 subcompact and Mazda 3 compact cars. Capacity will be 140,000 units and will eventually employ 3000 workers. Ford has not divulged their plans for the Flat Rock facility, but with Mustang sales around 75,000 annually, clearly something has to change.
Thursday, June 16, 2011
State of the Union June 15, 2011
June 15, 2011 online at www.uawlocal2250.com
• Union meeting is today at 7:15 am, 1 pm, 3 pm and 15 minutes after the longest first shift line time. Maximum line time today is 11.0.
• The final day for donations to the canned food drive is Thursday, June 16. Yesterday, $766 was collected in pre-trihttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifm, trim and chassis, a great result! We are hoping to have people on the floor in the remaining departments to collect today and tomorrow. As always, thanks for your generosity.
• From the Chaplaincy Committee: There will be an in-plant memorial for Duane “Cadillac” Johnson in stamping this evening at lunch time, 6:30 pm, on second shift. It will be held at the bleachers located at column V-8. All are welcome.
• Here are some excerpts from a Detroit News editorial by UAW President Bob King: “The revival of the U.S. auto industry is a testament to the effectiveness of choosing the moderate and pragmatic path. The choice confronting President Obama was whether to step in to prevent the demise of the auto industry or to accept the collapse of an industry critical to millions of workers, and to our national security…Some Republican politicians attacked him, and some still insist that we should have abandoned General Motors and Chrysler…Thanks to President Obama's courageous decision, and thanks to the willingness of business and labor to embrace change and work together, and thanks to the substantial sacrifices of auto workers, suppliers, dealers and shareholders, a turnaround is taking place…According to the Center for Automotive Research, without the auto industry rescue, there would have been a loss of 3 million jobs within three years. Only one-quarter of those jobs would have been lost at auto manufacturers. This would have translated to a loss to the U.S. treasury of $156 billion…President Obama put his faith in American businesses and workers, and we are committed to honoring this faith by contributing in every way we can to the success of the American auto industry…A skeptical public is looking to labor and business to see whether we have learned any lessons; whether we choose to return to business as usual or instead are committed to a new way of cooperating to succeed in the globally competitive world…The true path to job security is by producing the best quality products at the best value for our customers. We are committed to working with employers in a spirit of mutual respect, trust and common goals.”
• From the Detroit News: Sharply higher fuel efficiency standards by 2025 could force vehicle prices up by nearly $10,000, reduce sales by 5.5 million vehicles annually and eliminate more than 260,000 jobs, according to a study by the Ann Arbor-based Center for Automotive Research. The center's study, released Tuesday, predicted it will cost between $3,744 and $9,790 per vehicle to develop and produce cars that meet a range of between 47 and 62 mpg — a span being considered by federal regulators — by 2025. That's far higher than the $770 to $3,500 per vehicle estimate issued by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Environmental Protection Agency. If each automaker is required to reach a fleetwide average of 62 mpg, and gas costs $3.50 in today's dollars, 5.5 million potential buyers would evaporate from the 2025 car market, the study found; the reduced demand, it said, would cost 260,000 jobs. The two government agencies and California plan to propose fuel efficiency standards and tailpipe emissions limits for the 2017-25 model years in September. The EPA and NHTSA will finalize the new requirements by July 2012, after getting public comment. The agencies are considering annual increases in fuel efficiency ranging from 3-6 percent between 2017 and 2025, translating to a fleetwide average of 47-62 mpg by the end of the period. The fleetwide average has been set at 34.1 by 2016.
• Union meeting is today at 7:15 am, 1 pm, 3 pm and 15 minutes after the longest first shift line time. Maximum line time today is 11.0.
• The final day for donations to the canned food drive is Thursday, June 16. Yesterday, $766 was collected in pre-trihttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifm, trim and chassis, a great result! We are hoping to have people on the floor in the remaining departments to collect today and tomorrow. As always, thanks for your generosity.
• From the Chaplaincy Committee: There will be an in-plant memorial for Duane “Cadillac” Johnson in stamping this evening at lunch time, 6:30 pm, on second shift. It will be held at the bleachers located at column V-8. All are welcome.
• Here are some excerpts from a Detroit News editorial by UAW President Bob King: “The revival of the U.S. auto industry is a testament to the effectiveness of choosing the moderate and pragmatic path. The choice confronting President Obama was whether to step in to prevent the demise of the auto industry or to accept the collapse of an industry critical to millions of workers, and to our national security…Some Republican politicians attacked him, and some still insist that we should have abandoned General Motors and Chrysler…Thanks to President Obama's courageous decision, and thanks to the willingness of business and labor to embrace change and work together, and thanks to the substantial sacrifices of auto workers, suppliers, dealers and shareholders, a turnaround is taking place…According to the Center for Automotive Research, without the auto industry rescue, there would have been a loss of 3 million jobs within three years. Only one-quarter of those jobs would have been lost at auto manufacturers. This would have translated to a loss to the U.S. treasury of $156 billion…President Obama put his faith in American businesses and workers, and we are committed to honoring this faith by contributing in every way we can to the success of the American auto industry…A skeptical public is looking to labor and business to see whether we have learned any lessons; whether we choose to return to business as usual or instead are committed to a new way of cooperating to succeed in the globally competitive world…The true path to job security is by producing the best quality products at the best value for our customers. We are committed to working with employers in a spirit of mutual respect, trust and common goals.”
• From the Detroit News: Sharply higher fuel efficiency standards by 2025 could force vehicle prices up by nearly $10,000, reduce sales by 5.5 million vehicles annually and eliminate more than 260,000 jobs, according to a study by the Ann Arbor-based Center for Automotive Research. The center's study, released Tuesday, predicted it will cost between $3,744 and $9,790 per vehicle to develop and produce cars that meet a range of between 47 and 62 mpg — a span being considered by federal regulators — by 2025. That's far higher than the $770 to $3,500 per vehicle estimate issued by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Environmental Protection Agency. If each automaker is required to reach a fleetwide average of 62 mpg, and gas costs $3.50 in today's dollars, 5.5 million potential buyers would evaporate from the 2025 car market, the study found; the reduced demand, it said, would cost 260,000 jobs. The two government agencies and California plan to propose fuel efficiency standards and tailpipe emissions limits for the 2017-25 model years in September. The EPA and NHTSA will finalize the new requirements by July 2012, after getting public comment. The agencies are considering annual increases in fuel efficiency ranging from 3-6 percent between 2017 and 2025, translating to a fleetwide average of 47-62 mpg by the end of the period. The fleetwide average has been set at 34.1 by 2016.
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
State of the Union June 14, 2011
June 14, 2011 online at www.uawlocal2250.com
• From Chairman Mike Bullock: Unfortunately, due to the chassis breakdown on June 1, we will have to make up 130 units of lost production. The breakdown occurred at 2 pm that afternoon and was not repaired until 10 pm that night. While the lost production time was less than 4 hours, the contract language does not specify production time in defining a breakdown. The National Agreement states that limitations on overtime “shall be suspended in any plant whose operations are interrupted by emergency situations, such as single breakdowns of four hours or more” and that “management’s right to suspend such limitations for the purpose of making up lost production is, however, in the case of breakdowns, limited to production lost as the result of single breakdowns of four or more hours” (page 244) The International Union has confirmed that we are required to make up the lost production. However, for the rest of June, NOline time will be longer than 11.2.
• Union meeting is this Wednesday, June 15 at 7:15 am, 1 pm, 3 pm and 15 minutes after the longest first shift line time.
• GM announced yesterday that they will invest $20 million in machinery and equipment for its Fairfax Assembly plant to add future technologies and improvements to the Buick LaCrosse including eAssist, a light electrification technology that will boost highway fuel economy by 25 percent over the current model. GM also announced last Friday that they would invest $47 million into its Defiance powertrain plant to purchase tooling and equipment to increase production of components for the Ecotec 1.4-liter engine and the next generation of small block car and truck engines.
• From Reuters: General Motors Chief Executive Daniel Akerson has reassured the head of its European arm, Opel, that the U.S. carmaker was not in talks to sell it to a rival, according to a German newspaper. Akerson made the assurances in a phone call with Opel CEO Karl-Friedrich Stracke, Handelsblatt daily reported, citing a person familiar with the situation. GM dropped plans to spin off Opel in 2009 after months of negotiations to sell it, and embarked on a drastic restructuring to get the unit, which lost $1.6 billion last year, back on track. German media reported last week that GM was considering putting Opel back up for sale, with Europe's biggest carmaker Volkswagen and China's Beijing Automotive Industry Holding Co (BAIC) possible buyers.
• From Automotive News: Toyota and Honda reported lower inventory for the third straight month in June as they continue to recover from parts shortages caused by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami in Japan. Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A.'s inventory has plummeted by nearly 50 percent since March 1, falling to 198,900 vehicles on June 1, from 384,200 on March 1. American Honda's inventory of 137,500 vehicles on June 1 was down from 258,000 before the quake, a 47 percent drop. Toyota has said its production in Japan would return to 90 percent of prequake levels and North American production would hit 70 percent of normal output by July 1. Honda said this month that production at its two Japanese plants, and North American production of all models except the Civic, would return to normal this summer. Combined, the Detroit 3 had 1.3 million units of inventory on June 1, a 59-day supply. That was virtually the same as the prequake figure of 62 days as of March 1.
• From the Detroit News: Honda's profit for the fiscal year through March 2012 is expected to plunge 63.5 percent as vehicles sales slipped amid a parts shortage caused by the quake and tsunami in northeastern Japan. Honda is projecting a profit of 195 billion yen ($2.4 billion) for the current fiscal year, down sharply from 534 billion yen recorded the previous fiscal year. Last week, Toyota, the world's No. 1 automaker, said its annual profit for the fiscal year through March 2012 will dive 31 percent. Toyota forecast a 280 billion yen ($3.5 billion) profit for the fiscal year through March 2012, down from 408 billion yen for the previous fiscal year.
• With talk of up to 62 mpg future federal fuel economy requirements, use of aluminum parts in new vehicles is getting further attention. Pickups in particular are expected to be a target for increased use. Currently the Silverado uses aluminum prop shafts, transfer cases, transmission housings, wheels, control arms and -- depending on the choice of powertrain -- aluminum engine blocks and cylinder heads. GM decides whether to use aluminum on a part-by-part basis, said Tim Asoklis, chief engineer of GM pickups. "You have to use aluminum strategically," Asoklis said. Otherwise, he said, "we'd price ourselves out of the market."
• From Bloomberg: Nissan Motor Co. is aggravating the customers it needs most. Nissan, which wants to become the top seller of electric cars, repeatedly delayed deliveries to some U.S. buyers who reserved the first 20,000 Leafplug-in hatchbacks, according to interviews with customers. They said Nissan unexpectedly dropped some from the waiting list temporarily, asking that they reapply if they couldn’t prove they’d arranged installation of home- charging units that can cost more than $2,000. “My delivery date kept jumping around, from April to ‘pending’ to May to June to July,” said Marc Fishman, a 42- year-old movie sound editor from Burbank, California. He said Nissan canceled the first order he placed, in September 2010, without explanation and gave him conflicting information after he reordered the next month. The company expected “challenges” with its first electric car and first “built-to-order” model sold via the Internet in the U.S., said Brendan Jones, manager of Leaf sales in the country. On Nissan’s consumer website, people thinking about owning a Leaf are guided through a “suitability analysis,” Jones said. “It asks you, how much do you drive, do you have a garage?” he said. “Do some self-analysis before proceeding.” While anyone can reserve a Leaf for a $99 fee, for now Nissan lets people actually place orders in only seven states: Arizona, California, Hawaii, Oregon, Tennessee, Texasand Washington. “I expected the Leaf as early as December last year, and no later than March this year, so it is disappointing,” said David Radzieta, a computer systems analyst in Hueytown, Alabama, who made his reservation in July 2010. In Burbank, Fishman said he’s frustrated because his chance of getting a $5,000 electric car rebate from California has been put at risk. The program, funded by vehicle registration fees, may run out of money in July.
• From Chairman Mike Bullock: Unfortunately, due to the chassis breakdown on June 1, we will have to make up 130 units of lost production. The breakdown occurred at 2 pm that afternoon and was not repaired until 10 pm that night. While the lost production time was less than 4 hours, the contract language does not specify production time in defining a breakdown. The National Agreement states that limitations on overtime “shall be suspended in any plant whose operations are interrupted by emergency situations, such as single breakdowns of four hours or more” and that “management’s right to suspend such limitations for the purpose of making up lost production is, however, in the case of breakdowns, limited to production lost as the result of single breakdowns of four or more hours” (page 244) The International Union has confirmed that we are required to make up the lost production. However, for the rest of June, NOline time will be longer than 11.2.
• Union meeting is this Wednesday, June 15 at 7:15 am, 1 pm, 3 pm and 15 minutes after the longest first shift line time.
• GM announced yesterday that they will invest $20 million in machinery and equipment for its Fairfax Assembly plant to add future technologies and improvements to the Buick LaCrosse including eAssist, a light electrification technology that will boost highway fuel economy by 25 percent over the current model. GM also announced last Friday that they would invest $47 million into its Defiance powertrain plant to purchase tooling and equipment to increase production of components for the Ecotec 1.4-liter engine and the next generation of small block car and truck engines.
• From Reuters: General Motors Chief Executive Daniel Akerson has reassured the head of its European arm, Opel, that the U.S. carmaker was not in talks to sell it to a rival, according to a German newspaper. Akerson made the assurances in a phone call with Opel CEO Karl-Friedrich Stracke, Handelsblatt daily reported, citing a person familiar with the situation. GM dropped plans to spin off Opel in 2009 after months of negotiations to sell it, and embarked on a drastic restructuring to get the unit, which lost $1.6 billion last year, back on track. German media reported last week that GM was considering putting Opel back up for sale, with Europe's biggest carmaker Volkswagen and China's Beijing Automotive Industry Holding Co (BAIC) possible buyers.
• From Automotive News: Toyota and Honda reported lower inventory for the third straight month in June as they continue to recover from parts shortages caused by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami in Japan. Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A.'s inventory has plummeted by nearly 50 percent since March 1, falling to 198,900 vehicles on June 1, from 384,200 on March 1. American Honda's inventory of 137,500 vehicles on June 1 was down from 258,000 before the quake, a 47 percent drop. Toyota has said its production in Japan would return to 90 percent of prequake levels and North American production would hit 70 percent of normal output by July 1. Honda said this month that production at its two Japanese plants, and North American production of all models except the Civic, would return to normal this summer. Combined, the Detroit 3 had 1.3 million units of inventory on June 1, a 59-day supply. That was virtually the same as the prequake figure of 62 days as of March 1.
• From the Detroit News: Honda's profit for the fiscal year through March 2012 is expected to plunge 63.5 percent as vehicles sales slipped amid a parts shortage caused by the quake and tsunami in northeastern Japan. Honda is projecting a profit of 195 billion yen ($2.4 billion) for the current fiscal year, down sharply from 534 billion yen recorded the previous fiscal year. Last week, Toyota, the world's No. 1 automaker, said its annual profit for the fiscal year through March 2012 will dive 31 percent. Toyota forecast a 280 billion yen ($3.5 billion) profit for the fiscal year through March 2012, down from 408 billion yen for the previous fiscal year.
• With talk of up to 62 mpg future federal fuel economy requirements, use of aluminum parts in new vehicles is getting further attention. Pickups in particular are expected to be a target for increased use. Currently the Silverado uses aluminum prop shafts, transfer cases, transmission housings, wheels, control arms and -- depending on the choice of powertrain -- aluminum engine blocks and cylinder heads. GM decides whether to use aluminum on a part-by-part basis, said Tim Asoklis, chief engineer of GM pickups. "You have to use aluminum strategically," Asoklis said. Otherwise, he said, "we'd price ourselves out of the market."
• From Bloomberg: Nissan Motor Co. is aggravating the customers it needs most. Nissan, which wants to become the top seller of electric cars, repeatedly delayed deliveries to some U.S. buyers who reserved the first 20,000 Leafplug-in hatchbacks, according to interviews with customers. They said Nissan unexpectedly dropped some from the waiting list temporarily, asking that they reapply if they couldn’t prove they’d arranged installation of home- charging units that can cost more than $2,000. “My delivery date kept jumping around, from April to ‘pending’ to May to June to July,” said Marc Fishman, a 42- year-old movie sound editor from Burbank, California. He said Nissan canceled the first order he placed, in September 2010, without explanation and gave him conflicting information after he reordered the next month. The company expected “challenges” with its first electric car and first “built-to-order” model sold via the Internet in the U.S., said Brendan Jones, manager of Leaf sales in the country. On Nissan’s consumer website, people thinking about owning a Leaf are guided through a “suitability analysis,” Jones said. “It asks you, how much do you drive, do you have a garage?” he said. “Do some self-analysis before proceeding.” While anyone can reserve a Leaf for a $99 fee, for now Nissan lets people actually place orders in only seven states: Arizona, California, Hawaii, Oregon, Tennessee, Texasand Washington. “I expected the Leaf as early as December last year, and no later than March this year, so it is disappointing,” said David Radzieta, a computer systems analyst in Hueytown, Alabama, who made his reservation in July 2010. In Burbank, Fishman said he’s frustrated because his chance of getting a $5,000 electric car rebate from California has been put at risk. The program, funded by vehicle registration fees, may run out of money in July.
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