Volvo picks South Carolina for its first US plant

[Recursion]

Last edited Mon May 11, 2015, 06:05 PM - Edit history (2)

Source: Detroit Free Press

Volvo Cars said today it will invest $500 million to build a new plant in Berkeley County, S.C., as industry sales in North America continue to increase.

The automaker, which is owed by Zhejiang Geely Holdings of China, said the investment will create 2,000 jobs and the plant will initially be able to produce up to 100,000 cars per year.

Construction will begin in early autumn 2015, with the first vehicles expected to roll off the assembly line in 2018.

The automaker said the new plant is part of its plan to double global sales, boost market share and lift profitability.

Read more: http://www.freep.com/story/money/business/2015/05/11/volvo-new-plant-south-carolina-mexico-automotive-investment/27108569/

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EDIT: Detroit Free Press, obviously. Not Detritus Free Press. Never post from a tablet.

[TexasProgresive]

1. Silly me, I just can't keep up!

Here I was thinking Volvo Cars was still owned by Ford and now I find out it is owned by a Chinese firm.

[Recursion]

2. A Chinese firm more eager to expand US operations than Ford is (nt)

[whatthehey]

11. Well... it's probably because they are building a US plant and Ford didn't

Can't imagine why that's not a pretty open and shut demonstration of greater willingness to expand Volvo US operations. Definitional really...

[whatthehey]

16. Under Ford, Volvos were built in Sweden, Belgium, Thailand and China. Not in the US

They sure as hell didn't support ANY US workers, unionized or not.

[TheBlackAdder]

14. Ford, their recent motor company sales have me question them.

They sell off Volvo to the Chinese, during the financial crisis, when they were not cash constrained.
Those could have been Ford-built Volvos. Now, they are a brand that I would never think to buy.

Then, to slap Great Britain in the face, they sell Jaguar & Land Rover to Tata Motors, of India.
The English are still sore that their major marques are now part of a post-colonial holding company.

[Recursion]

24. Do you understand that Ford used to own Volvo?

And when they owned Volvo, they did not build a US plant for Volvo?

[Hoyt]

29. I'm happy for folk in SC who will get good jobs. If treated poorly, they'll wise up about unions

[Recursion]

23. Ford did not build a Volvo plant in the US

The Chinese company they sold Volvo to did. It's not difficult.

[Recursion]

30. Why do you care which country's billionaires own a company employing Americans?

Does it really make a difference to you?

[Hoyt]

31. Yes, take the money they invest here and the jobs that come with it

And be happy.

I'm sorry, I don't get your attitude. Would you rather the jobs stay in China?

I guarantee that there will be a long line of people hoping to get one of these jobs.

[In_The_Wind]

32. Don't be rude on DU.

[IdiotsforPalin]

3. Wow

After the Boeing disaster you'd think SC would be off the list

[turbinetree]

10. Boeing

was going to put that assembly plant in that state at whatever the costs, even if it meant a delay in the program for the B787.

http://www.reuters.com/article

[turbinetree]

5. Just great

a Authoritarian Capitalist country is going to be bringing its business model to this country and they planted themselves in a state that supports that business model (RIGHT TO WORK for Less).
Just like some other Large corporations planting themselves there.
And since the Communists don't believe in unions (if you live in Communist China they throw you in jail if you try to organize).

This is just a microcosms of what TPP is all about, and I know that China is not part of that outsourcing plan-----------------but---its the same rhetoric every time

http://www.just-auto.com/news/volvo-union-cautiously-welcomes-geely-buy

http://tradetreachery.com

[Romeo.lima333]

6. sthis all smells like b.s.

Volvo said it picked South Carolina because of its easy access to international ports and infrastructure, a well-trained labor force, attractive investment environment and experience in the high tech manufacturing sector.

[Kelvin Mace]

8. "a well-trained labor force"?

Don't they have to know things like "readin" and "cypherin"?

[n2doc]

12. Charleston has a great port

The rest, ? Probably "attractive investment environment"= bribes and tax exemptions

Boeing has had difficulty in getting up to speed there because of the workforce.

[TheCowsCameHome]

7. Volvo must've liked the pro-union sentiment in S.C.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

9. First US plant? Oh, now I get it.

Last edited Tue May 12, 2015, 08:38 AM - Edit history (1)

Volvo Trucks, the part of the Volvo Group that builds Volvo trucks, is different from Volvo Cars.

New River Valley Assembly Plant

The 1.6-million-square-foot New River Valley assembly plant, located on nearly 300 acres in Dublin, Virginia, is the largest Volvo truck manufacturing facility in the world. The plant is certified under the ISO 9001 quality, ISO 14001 environmental, and ISO 50001 energy standards. The New River Valley plant produces all Volvo trucks sold in North America, including the VNM, VNL, VNX, VHD and VAH models.

A History of Innovation

Volvo Trucks North America’s operations and products are guided by the company’s three core values: Quality, Safety and Environmental Care. The Volvo VNM, VNL, VNX, VHD and VAH trucks are assembled in the United States at the New River Valley Plant in Dublin, Virginia, while Volvo engines for North America are assembled in Hagerstown, Maryland. The New River Valley Plant is certified to ISO50001 energy standards. Both plants are certified to ISO14001 environmental and ISO9001 quality standards.

The Volvo Group is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of trucks, buses, construction equipment and marine and industrial engines. The Group also provides complete solutions for financing and service. The Volvo Group, which employs about 110,000 people, has production facilities in 19 countries and sells its products in more than 190 markets. In 2013, the Volvo Group’s sales amounted to $41.5 billion. The Volvo Group is a publicly-held company headquartered in Gothenburg, Sweden. Volvo shares are listed on OMX Nordic Exchange Stockholm and are traded OTC in the U.S. For more information, please visit www.volvogroup.com or www.volvogroup.mobi if you are using your mobile phone.

[happyslug]

19. But that Truck Plant is UAW Unionized....

http://articles.wdbj7.com/2011-03-27/volvo-group_29349447

http://www.uaw2069.net/

Volvo owns Mack Trucks:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mack_Trucks

Also owns Renault Trucks:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Renault_Trucks

The UAW represents skilled trades and production workers at five leading manufacturers of heavy trucks: Freightliner, Mack, Navistar International, Peterbilt and Volvo North America, as well as engineers, draftsmen designers and other salaried employees at Mack, Navistar and Volvo North America.

http://www.uaw.org/page/members

[ileus]

17. my neighbor works for volvo...7 days a week.

http://www.volvotrucks.com/trucks/na/en-us/about_us/facilities_locations/manufacturing_plant/Pages/manufacturing_plant_ILF.aspx

[happyslug]

21. Unionized plant

http://www.uaw.org/page/members

[happyslug]

20. Volvo present owners will accept union, as they did in Sweden

Last edited Mon May 11, 2015, 06:09 PM - Edit history (1)

http://www.thinkchina.ku.dk/reports-and-presentations/Lessons_from_Volvo_s_transition_to_Chinese_ownership_-_a_union_perspective.pdf

The real question till they permit a union to organize their workers? That has NOT occurred in China.

Wikipedia comment on the "All-China Federation of Trade Unions (ACFTU)" by the International Federation of Trade Unions, ICFTU:

There are differing approaches among ICFTU affiliates and Global Union Federations concerning contacts with the ACFTU. They range from “no contacts” to “constructive dialogue”. The ICFTU, noting that the ACFTU is not an independent trade union organisation and, therefore, cannot be regarded as an authentic voice of Chinese workers, reaffirms its request to all affiliates and Global Union Federations having contacts with the Chinese authorities, including the ACFTU, to engage in critical dialogue. This includes raising violations of fundamental workers’ and trade union rights in any such meetings, especially concerning cases of detention of trade union and labour rights activists

http://www.ituc-csi.org/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All-China_Federation_of_Trade_Unions

The International Federation of Trade Unions, ICFTU dissolved itself in 2006 when it Merged with the World Confederation of Labor (WCL) to form the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC):

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Trade_Union_Confederation

Thus the old ICFTU was a little more right wing then the WCL and the ITUC. the ICFTU came out of the post WWII cold war situation with the ICFTU seeing the Communist Trade Groups of the Soviet Union as NOT being "Free Trade Union" but under the control of the Communist Party of Moscow and refused to be associated with those Unions. The WCL had been formed after WWI, as a Catholic (later Christian, later secular) alternative to other world wide federations (the WCL saw itself after WWI, as a Catholic Alternative to Communists and Socialist unions, it adopted Catholic Social Teachings, including the right of workers or organize and fight for better wages, by the 1960s the WCL was dealing with a lot of Moslem and Buddhist union members who objected to the Christian base of the Federation and for that reason the WCL dropped its Christian claims while retaining Catholic Social Teachings, once the Christian claims were dropped and the fall of Communist Soviet Union, the difference between the WCL and the ICFTU were almost moot, so they merged in 2006).

Just a comment about the ICFTU and its successor the ITUC, both maintain to be a member a Union must be independent of Government AND employers and that is NOT true of Unions in China.

Today's position on Unions and China is as follows:

Workers are not free to form or join the trade unions of their choice. Only one "workers' organisation" is recognised in law, the All China Federation of Trade Unions (ACFTU).

http://survey.ituc-csi.org/China.html?edition=336#tabs-2

Global map on the Freedom to form and join a Union:

http://survey.ituc-csi.org/?lang=en

[Hoyt]

26. Trade investment and jobs.

[scscholar]

28. They'll learn this is a bad idea...

Just like BMW, Boeing, Maytag, etc..

[erpowers]

33. Please Explain

What is happening with these companies? I think a few other posters mentioned that Boeing is having problems in S.C. However, none of them mentioned the problems? So, what is happening?

[Recursion]

35. AMAW (the aircraft version of the UAW) organizers were threatened at gunpoint

the organization bid was postponed, and NLRB is stepping in. Even if a company doesn't want a union, they definitely don't want that kind of pressure either.

[JI7]

34. i'm trying to figure out why this is supposed to be a bad thing

the usual stuff about SC labor laws would apply to any company.

[betterdemsonly]

36. It is unfortunate that Swedish and German companies don't locate their

factories in states that value education and aren't run by fanatical religious extremists. I feel so bad that bad people get rewarded for being assholes at every turn. Their employees are just disposable serfs.