30 THOUSAND Permanent Layoffs Imminent at Ford Motor Co.. Discuss.

[elehhhhna]

Will the NG be called out to protect management when the announcements come down?

The BA once again has NO PLAN other than "job retraining"...can't wait to hear what jobs this retraining will cover.

GMA reported this morning that Chinese-built cars will hit the US in '08, but they do not meet US safety or emissions standards. That's probably why they'll retail for under 10K...

[sarcasmo]

1. But the unemployment is less than five percent and I have created

400,000 jobs, to quote the Commander in Chimp.

[malaise]

2. I'm just glad they're making the announcement

before the big SOU speech.

[ChairmanAgnostic]

3. depending on how you count the unemployed.

[sarcasmo]

16. Exactly, their #'s don't reflect folks who gave up looking for work.

The #'s don't reflect folks who have just had their unemployment run out.
True #'s IMHO, Michigan 15percent unemployment, rest of the country at least ten percent.

[ChairmanAgnostic]

18. I trust your numbers better than Bush's

That is what I am seeing around here, too.

[TahitiNut]

21. Wrong. The #'s DO reflect folks who have had their unemployment run out.

As long as the person is unemployed in the CPS's survey period and continues to seek work, they ARE counted as unemployed. The unemployment numbers come from the CPS, NOT THE NUMBER COLLECTING UNEMPLOYMENT.

The unemployment numbers are low because people are giving up looking for work or because people are attempting to make ends meet with odd jobs, part time work, and low wage work below their 'ordinary' earning power. The PRIMARY reason is giving up looking for work - this can be clearly seen in the decline of the work force as a percentage of working age population.

We can see the problem most clearly in the following graph ...

[sarcasmo]

24. Then they are lying about their actual #'s. Unemployment in Michigan

is at least fifteen percent.

[sarcasmo]

25. Self Delete

[BlueJazz]

4. "Job Retraining"..Huh? One of my friends went through a ..

"Job Retraining deal"
EVERY single training choice was for shit jobs that would have paid shit wages.
It was just another Con Job to make the former employer feel like they
were "Doing something to help their former worker"

Oh..the jobs were like "Communication Consultant" (Answering Phones)
"Janitorial Manager" (emptying Trash Cans)
"Construction Associate" (Hauling tar paper up a ladder for Roofers)

Christ!

[SpiralHawk]

14. A Loyal Prole would never complain about this

If your friend would only learn to love Big BushCo, he would be quite content flipping hamburgers at McD's for $6 a hour

The fault, dear BlueJazz, lies with your friend He should learn to love his lot in life as a Prole

Perhaps an increase in his Prozac script would make the whole scenario seem approprriately rosey for him?

[tsuki]

5. Different rules for different folk should be the tag line for the RNC.

"but they do not meet US safety or emissions standards. That's probably why they'll retail for under 10K..."

[catmandu57]

6. I don't suppose this will throw a wrinkle in the sotu

these bastards are really good at ignoring reality and substituting their own. This is going to ripple out, gm is next, and all the axillary industries with it.

[elehhhhna]

7. Will Congress finally extend unemployment benefits?

How much is a COBRA payment for otherwise uninsureable ex-employees?

How many ee's are going to accidentally/on-purpose injure themselves this week? (A common reaction to impending layoffs in order to increase bene's and possibly ensure a future return to work?).

Will Ford offer any relo opportunities to layed-off ee's who post for jobs in their other plants?

WHERE IS THE MEDIA COVERAGE? Seems pretty thin so far...

[Tesla]

9. Somehow he will use this to ensure his "Permanent" Tax cut plan

[tnlefty]

17. Washington Journal had a reporter (whose name I don't recall) on this

morning to discuss this. I couldn't believe the numbers of idiots calling in to slam the unions and workers, but the last call was marvelous!!! A man called in to ask about the difference in salary and benefits between the CEOs of the US auto makers and the CEOs of Japanese auto makers. The reporter flatly stated that the Japanese CEOs make in the hundred thousand dollar range and that the difference between them and their worker's isn't nearly as great the the difference between the US workers and the US CEOs who are earning millions in salary and benefit packages.

[RB TexLa]

20. COBRA cost is what the insurance actually cost

It's the cost the employee and the employer were paying to the insurance company.

[elehhhhna]

23. Yep. It will be beyond the reach of many of the unemployed I'm sure.

[Dr.Phool]

8. Job retraining is a lie

4 years ago my company went down the tubes (parent company LTV Steel). We were all ceritied for Trade Adjustment Act (TAA) funding for job retraining. I applied in February, but the funding for the year ran out in March.

The following year, after moving to Florida, I reapplied down here, seeing that you have 3 years to use and complete the re-training. Jeb Bush got the funds in a block grant, and used the money to subsidize tax cuts, and refused to fund the program.

Typical Bush double-speak. War is peace. Freedom is slavery. Here's some invisible job re-training money!

[Village Idiot]

10. "Welcome to Wal-Mart."

[hatrack]

11. "Would you like fries with that?"

On a related note, I wonder how much time during the Super Bowl broadcast will be devoted to profiling the host city.

:eyes:

[mrcheerful]

12. Maybe this will finally wake up the GM and Ford workers that have been

backing the same people cutting their throats. Auto workers have backed the rethug party under the belief that rethugs would cut welfare and give them huge tax breaks every since Reagan's reign of terror. Living in the state that will feel the heaviest work loss, I've seen these so called brave auto workers in action, when the call for a re-call on the rethug Governor, GM workers verbally and physically attacked the people asking for the re-call. Do I feel sorry that these auto workers will lose their jobs? Hell NO, not after I seen them saying that unions were the fault of car prices and how no one but them should work for a union. Maybe when they suffer the same as the rest of us they will learn, rethugs lied and sold them out. Sure I know what this is going to do to the economy and how its going to effect the rest of us, but after all we reap what we sow and this is what the auto worker sowed. For those auto workers that didn't sow this destruction, well I do feel for those few.

[Sparkman]

13. FORD political contribution:74% to Repubs...who run the whole show now.

When "free trade" not fair trade is enforced by U.S. trade relations for selected industries...
Years ago, when several engineering associates proclaimed..."buying computers and televisions from china and japan is no problem, as long as the U.S. can dominate the war industry materials", they are now OUT OF WORK! Even military equipment is built overseas, but to a lessor degree for now, than commercial hardware.
Now it looks like the information technlogy jobs ARE ALSO EXPORTED! When cartoons are created off shore and SONY owns movie studios, we may want to begin curtailing our buying habits. Buy union, buy made in U.S.A., AND KEEP THOSE OLD CARS, use domestic mechanics if you find a guy you can trust.
$20,000 buys a lot of Bush-cartel gasoline. $10 per day=2000 days worth.

You can go electric with a small truck or car, retrofitted for around $3K, and you have a pure electric, house current charged vehicle usually with a 40 mile range per charge(fair weather only)!

[shugah]

15. As cuts loom, Ford announces $2 billion profit

article in the detroit free press this morning

http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060123/NEWS99/60123003

ford's "Way Forward." :eyes:

Ford is expected to announce at 10:30 a.m. up to 25,000 in job cuts and to close plants, including the Wixom assembly plant.

The Way Forward plan is expected to help save Ford money by more closely aligning its labor and production with the volume of vehicles it makes. As market share fell, the company had become inefficient with too more plants and people.

poor wixom! i can't believe they are closing that plant.

[meganmonkey]

19. This is job security for me

I work in hunger relief in Michigan. :(

This means I will be fielding phone calls from men and women who have never had to ask for help in their life, but who can't afford food anymore.

Please, if you live in the areas where plants are closing, or where unemployment in general is high, think of donating to local food banks or other hunger relief agencies when doing charitable contributions. Or do a food drive at your 4th of July party or something. And if you are among those needing assistance, I hope you have good programs in your area assisting you.

[LiberalAndProud]

22. It seems to me that the Republicans are focusing on the wrong border issue

We're building fences to keep the workers out.

Shouldn't we be digging moats to keep our jobs in?

[malaise]

26. Any management salary cuts? n/t

[MercutioATC]

27. Actually, they're also doing buyouts...not just retraining.