Thought you guys might be interested to know that the production of Tacoma's will move along side the Tundra's in San Antonio, TX. NUMMI Factory will close and transferred over to the "Old GM".
This makes me a little sad. But in this economy and the way California tries to cram the laws down any business that operated within it's boards throat... it's not that surprising in the long run.
UAW shoots itself in the foot again. This can only increase the quality and reduce the cost of the Tacoma. Maybe they will be able to reformulate a paint that doesn't chip off with a fingernail.
My heart and prayers go out to the 4500 NUMMI workers who will lose their jobs next March.
But the decision to move the Taco to the Tundra plant was a great choice. It's a state of the art plant that is currently under-utilized. I'm sure they will do the Taco justice there.
In the past I have been no fan of union-ade vehicles. I have a 2003 Tundra, built in Indiana by non-union workers and a 2008 Tacoma, built in California by the U.A.W. The union-built vehicle is actually a better vehicle. Now, I know it's much newer, there are many variables other than quality of assembly., and that realistic conclusions must be reached by a total of more than only two pickups. However, I must admit that union workers can, and do, produce fine vehicles. Also, the plant closure most cetainly had nothing to do with the NUMMI union workers, but had a lot to do with the wacky, liberal politics in California.
In the past I have been no fan of union-ade vehicles. I have a 2003 Tundra, built in Indiana by non-union workers and a 2008 Tacoma, built in California by the U.A.W. The union-built vehicle is actually a better vehicle. Now, I know it's much newer, there are many variables other than quality of assembly., and that realistic conclusions must be reached by a total of more than only two pickups. However, I must admit that union workers can, and do, produce fine vehicles. Also, the plant closure most cetainly had nothing to do with the NUMMI union workers, but had a lot to do with the wacky, liberal politics in California.
The problem is not so much how the parts were put together (assembly line work is not exactly brain surgery), but the costs are too high.
The plant is in an area with a high cost of living to start with, then add on all of union baggage of higher than market wages, expensive benefits packages, and not being able to fire useless workers, all contribute to higher costs and less productivity.
The plant is in an area with a high cost of living to start with, then add on all of union baggage of higher than market wages, expensive benefits packages, and not being able to fire useless workers, all contribute to higher costs and less productivity.
Yep, costs played no small part in their decision. The writing was on the wall earlier this week when Toyota announced that it would cut global production by 700k to 1m units.
I guarantee that you will hear more bad press about Toyota closing the plant, but relatively little mention that GM was the one who bailed on the 50-50 joint venture. The dick-head UAW president was already talking trash about Toyota's decision, but I never heard him say shit about GM abandoning the operation.
Wish they had done this sooner. Idiots in Mexico couldn't even get my visor stickers on straight.
I've been working for a recycling, waste management company in Torreon Mexico for the last 10 months. We do the waste management and other services for international companies that have local plants like, Caterpillar, John Deere, GMC, LG Phillips and Linamar(make aluminum blocks for Ford). And your comments are wrong and sound ignorant.
Behind closed doors, when we have meetings with executives that come down to Mexico, the one thing they all say is that the quality and production of their products is equal or superior compared to their plants in the USA. They say the workers take their jobs more seriously since there is so much competition for jobs, and that many are over qualified for their positions and pay. If they loose their jobs, their families don't eat, how's that for motivation?
The way the Koreans ran the LG Phillips plant down here was something very impressive. They would literally learn Spanish in 3 months and live at the plant. Meticulous and extremely disciplined. They had that plant running like a robot, I don't think that would be possible in the USA. The plant closed when the LCD's came out and we got to dismantle the plant with Mexican workers, it would have taken us 10 times longer and 1000 times more expensive with American workers. This isn't an insult to Americans like myself, it's simply reality in a global economy.
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You're not finished when you lose, you're only finished when you quit.
Yep, costs played no small part in their decision. The writing was on the wall earlier this week when Toyota announced that it would cut global production by 700k to 1m units.
Actually, the writing was on the wall 2 years ago when Toyota Japan told those running the Fremont plant to "Either get costs down when the labor contract expires in August 2009 or else!"
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Its sad to see how all of you bash unions. I am a very proud member of the IBEW local 164 (international brotherhood of electrical workers Paramus, NJ) And I admit you get the occasional hall rat which are lazy and hide behind the union but for the most part they are usually weeded out. For the most part us union workers compared to the "scabs" do much better work. We are more professional, more efficient, much more trained, our work is ridiculously nicer, and opposed to popular belief we are much faster at what we do. True a Mexican has the carrot in front of him so hes going to haul ass cutting corners if he has to for the $10 an hour opposed to a union worker going at a good rate but making sure to do everything as he was trained. The car companies did a great job at painting the workers as the villains but the same as our field where a union telecom workers package is about $50 an hour a non union guys package is probably about $30 an hour the contractor is still bidding at $60 an hour just the non union shop is making a killing. Do we make to much money maybe but isn't that the American way? It doesn't happen over night years and years of negotiating earns this, nobody questions the execs and upper management on the salary they get I guess if you go to college and become a pencil pusher its ok to make 6 figures but if you work an honest days work every day come home dirty and tired you should be considered lower class and make $10 an hour after all you never did go to college. Remember you are only as good as what you are given if you would of put the best CEO in the world at the helm of Lehman Brothers the last couple of quarters he probably wouldn't have been able to save the company from the shit it had become. If you give a union worker shit parts to build a car it will at the end of the day be a shit car.
Last edited by El Loco VG; 08-29-2009 at 04:42 PM.
My heart and prayers go out to the 4500 NUMMI workers who will lose their jobs next March.
Maybe they could snick across the boarder and work in Tijuana???
As for the union's being the problem, well, they are a big part of manufacturer's un-doing here in the United States.
By the way, my Mexican Taco has been perfect...
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