Toyota offers buyouts to U.S. workers

[Joanne98]

TOKYO/DETROIT (Reuters) - Toyota Motor Corp offered buyouts to some 18,000 U.S. workers and said it would cut pay for executives and blue-collar workers in North America, and an analyst warned it may soon cut working hours in Japan.

The world's No.1 automaker, struggling as the global credit crunch sends auto sales sliding, said it would shut down production for more days in April at plants in the United States, Canada and Mexico and would cut executive pay and bonuses.

"The global economy is in a once-in-a-century situation ... Nobody knows if these steps will be enough given the uncertain outlook," said Shotaro Noguchi, an analyst at Mitsubishi UFJ Securities.

"Inventory levels are still high, and a recovery in demand is not in sight yet. Toyota may have to adopt work-sharing in Japan in line with production cuts, at the same time as reducing overtime work."

The cost-cutting underscores how the world's top automaker and a perennial blue chip in a notoriously volatile sector is struggling amid the worst auto slump in decades.

Toyota said the North American moves were intended to keep as many of its North American workers on the payroll as possible.

http://www.reuters.com/article/ousiv/idUSTRE51C05O20090213

[The Brethren]

1. '"The global economy is in a once-in-a-century situation '

I'm don't think I would agree with that necessarily, although I would like to. The global crisis can just as easily reoccur in shorter intervals depending on key factors. And that's assuming we, or the rest of the world, actually bounce back from this for longer period then short-term.




Full text of the Stimulus Plan ("American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009"): Orig. House version -- http://appropriations.house.gov/pdf/RecoveryBill01-15-09.pdf , House spreadsheet -- http://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=pV-c6t5fOVmNorqMpHvnCMw ; Senate version -- http://appropriations.senate.gov/News/2009_02_02_The_American_Recovery_and_Reinvestment_Act_of_2009.pdf ; and Senate compromise -- http://www.govtrack.us/congress/billtext.xpd?bill=h111-1 , Text and $$$ details of Senate compromise -- http://appropriations.senate.gov/News/2009_02_08_UPDATED_Appropriations_Provisions_of_American_Recovery_and_Reinvestment_Act.pdf?CFID=4043629&CFTOKEN=40573040 in addition to -- http://readthestimulus.org/amdth1.pdf ; along with -- http://www.readthestimulus.org/ .