Time For A Made In Canada Auto Industry

Here is a perfect example of Branch plant economics. Despite the auto pact,there is now a disconnect between our national auto industry and it's American owners.

Time to create a made in Canada auto industry. But not one that means co-opting workers through unionization without the right to strike.

Domestic auto sales up in Canada

Detroit's Big Three automakers did something in October they haven't been able to do in 10 long years - they outsold their overseas rivals in Canada by a wide margin.

Chrysler axes 1100 jobs at Brampton plant

By John mccrank TORONTO (Reuters) - Chrysler is cutting around 1100 jobs at its Brampton, Ontario, assembly plant as part of wider layoffs planned by the automaker, the head of the Canadian Auto Workers union said on Thursday.

Brampton's muscle-car party is over

Two years ago this month, Canadian Auto Workers union President Buzz Hargrove joined other car industry big shots on a stage at Chrysler LLC's Brampton assembly plant northwest of Toronto to celebrate what was then the hottest car on the road and one of Chrysler's most popular products ever: The beefy Chrysler 300.

This week, he took a call from Chrysler brass informing him that sales of the 300 and its two sister cars built at Brampton -- the Dodge Charger and the Magnum wagon -- had slipped enough in North America to warrant a major cutback in production. The unbridled optimism in 2005 among the CAW and Chrysler executives that the car would stand the test of time has now hit a cold wall of realism suggesting it may not. And in a flash, Brampton's muscle car party is over.

Blaming a slowing U.S. market, Chrysler announced yesterday it will discontinue the Magnum and cut the third shift at Brampton in February, putting 1,100 factory workers on layoff. It's part of a wider and deeper cutback effort under new owners Cerberus Capital Management that will see the automaker dump four models and cut an additional 10,000 hourly, 1,000 salaried and 1,000 contract jobs as it aims to steer the company back to profitability. Chrysler lost US$2-billion in the first quarter this year before splitting from Mercedes-Benz maker Daimler AG.

Chrysler bows to price pressure

Chrysler Canada is boosting cash incentives on its vehicles to address consumer concerns that they're paying more for cars and trucks here than in the United States -- the biggest automaker to date to adjust prices to the rising Canadian dollar.

Find blog posts, photos, events and more off-site about:
Buzz Hargrove,
Liberals, unionization,
CAW, Canada, auto, automobile, Frank Stronach, Magna, business unions, auto parts
Chrysler, CAW, Canada, Dahlmer, Benz, auto, automobile, Stronach, Magna, Ontario, environment

Tories Green Hot Air Plan For Cars

Environment Minister John Baird loves to talk about how the Conservative Government in Ottawa is more than just talk when it comes to their hot air Green Plan. They take action. Well Canadians are still waiting for their kickback for buying a Green Car.

Ottawa can't shift green rebates into gear

More than four months after announcing rebates for those who buy fuel-sipping cars and trucks, the federal government has not paid a cent to buyers of 2006 and 2007 models that qualify, and automakers are voicing complaints as 2008 models flow on to dealers' lots.

The ecoAuto feebate program set up in the March federal budget, offers rebates of up to $2,000 and also slaps a maximum levy of $4,000 on gas guzzlers. But it is angering consumers and growing increasingly messy for the auto companies, associations representing the major automakers operating in Canada say in a letter to Transport Minister Lawrence Cannon, Finance Minister Jim Flaherty and Environment Minister John Baird.

By contrast, Honda Canada Inc., began offering rebates on its Fit subcompact car and manual transmission Civic compact in May, made them retroactive to budget day, March 19, and is paying the money, senior vice-president Jim Miller said Monday.

The Fit did not qualify under the federal scheme because it uses 6.6 litres of gas to travel 100 kilometres, just missing the cut-off line for rebates on 2007 and 2006 vehicles, which is set at 6.5 litres per 100 kilometres.

People who bought Toyota Yaris subcompacts, ethanol-powered Chevrolet Impalas and Chrysler Sebrings, diesel-powered Smart cars and other alternative -technology vehicles after March 19 are eligible for rebates.

But consumers kicking tires on 2008 models, assuming they will get a rebate, may be out of luck because Transport Canada still hasn't announced what vehicles from the new model year are eligible.

Although sales of Toyota's Yaris jumped in April and May after the program was introduced, they fell in June.

Industry analyst Dennis DesRosiers, who heads DesRosiers Automotive Consultants Inc., said an analysis of subcompact sales for the past two years shows the so-called feebate program has had little impact on sales.

“We said on day one that the feebate would fail miserably, four months into the program we are being proven to be right,” Mr. DesRosiers said in a note to clients last week.

SEE:

Corporate America Greener Than Harper

Groupthink

Capitalism Creates Global Warming

Harpers Alberta Green Plan

John Baird In Exxons Pocket?

"C '" Car Go

Junk Science: Ethanol

Chocolate and Cars

Chrysler Made In Canada?

Chrysler Inc. vs. Liberal Inc.

Find blog posts, photos, events and more off-site about:

Conservatives, green, environment,energy, coal, green house gas, politics, Canadaenvironment,, Baird,, Stelmach,, tarsands,, oil sands,, Kyoto,, Alberta, Canada, Conservatives, Harper, politics, green house gas, climate change, global warming,

Chrysler, CAW, Canada, Dahlmer, Benz, auto, automobile, Stronach, Magna, Ontario, environment

CEO Profits From Ford Failure

Once again a CEO makes off with filthy lucre while the company collapses. Though some speculate that he may have been rewarded for saving Bush.
Since he did nothing that saved jobs at Ford.

Ford CEO: $28M for 4 months work
Struggling Ford Motor Co., which posted a record $12.7 billion net loss in 2006, gave its new CEO Alan Mulally $28 million for four months on the job, according to the company's proxy statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission Thursday.The Ford (Charts) pay package for Mulally comes on top of the $7.4 million that aerospace company Boeing (Charts) had previously reported paying him for his eight months running that company's commercial aircraft unit before he made the move to Ford at the beginning of September. Mulally's pay package at Ford included a $7.5 million hiring bonus, as well as $11 million that Ford described as an offset for forfeited performance and stock option awards at Boeing. In addition he received $55,469 for relocation costs and temporary housing. The details of the compensation packages and costs come as Ford moves ahead with plans to close plants and cut more than 30,000 hourly positions from the company in an effort to stem losses.

The company had disclosed in a footnote buried on page 228 of an earlier filing with SEC that Mulally saw the value of his stock bonuses increase to $6 million from the originally agreed upon $5 million "after reviewing the company's 2006 performance results and Mr. Mulally's leadership role in progressing his key priorities."

Ford announced in March that all full-time staff would receive some form of modest bonus for 2006, as it attempted to improve morale in the middle of a downsizing. Most salaried workers and supervisors received between $300 to $800, depending on their location and rank in the company. Most union members received about $500. The company did not detail the overall cost of the bonus program, but the widespread bonuses cost the company at least $62 million, based on the 125,000 employees who were eligible for the payment.

See

Zero Sum Gain

Ford

CEO

Stock Options

Corporate Crime

White Collar Crime

Criminal Capitalism

Productivity

Wealth


Find blog posts, photos, events and more off-site about:
criminology, corporate-crime, white-collar-crime, sociology, accounting, scandal, criminal-capitalism, workers, employees,
automobiles, manufacturing, Ford, Big-Three, USA, Canada,CEO, pay, goldenparachutes, Corporations, fatcats, rich, superrich, America,

Chrysler Made In Canada?

Since the Harpocrites love Made In Canada Solutions here's one; nationalize Chrysler through tripartite fund raising and purchase. Both levels of government; provincial and federal funding for compact and hybrid cars and trucks, with funding from CAW and Big Daddy Warbucks; Magna's Stronach confirms Chrysler interest

With CAW members along with environmental and consumer advocates on the board as worker and public representatives. This is how the German Auto Industry built itself up. An why it will cut its relationship with Chrysler.

Because Dahlmer wants to sell. And if these guys get it the will slash jobs and contracts, affecting CAW and Stronach. It is widely rumoured that private equity powerhouses Cerberus Capital Management LP and Blackstone Group LP are also considering putting Chrysler in their portfolios.

$700-million Chrysler plan at risk, union says

Potential Chrysler buyers call CAW's Hargrove

Magna chief looking at Chrysler



Find blog posts, photos, events and more off-site about:
Chrysler, CAW, Canada, Dahlmer, Benz, auto, automobile, Stronach, Magna, Ontario, environment