Clock ticks on
Ford pension proposal

Automaker tries to slim $49B liability with lump-sum deals

By Karl Henkel The Detroit News
July 31, 2012

William Gryc is among about 98,000 Ford Motor Co. salaried retirees facing pension buyout offers, but this isn't his first brush with lump-sum buyouts.

Gryc, of Hartland, was a Ford employee for nearly 15 years. Before that, he worked nearly two decades at General Motors Co. and took a pension buyout from GM in 1988 worth about $84,000.

The retired engineer finds himself in a similar position. But this time he isn't sure if he'll take the buyout, which is about 10 percent less than the $250,000 he anticipated.

"The first time, it worked out pretty well," he said.

"At this point I'm not sure. I'm going to take some more time to evaluate it."

The 69-year-old Gryc is part of the first wave of Ford salaried retirees receiving notification of a lump-sum buyout, Ford's way of shedding up to one-third of its $49 billion U.S. pension liability.

Ford underfunded its $74 billion global pension liability by $15.4 billion at the end of 2011 and hopes many of its white-collar retirees will take the lump-sum payout to help close the funding gap and shore up its balance sheet, which could boost Ford's cash flow and stock price.

The automaker is sending its white-collar retirees two letters: The first informs them that they are eligible for the lump-sum option; the follow-up letter includes Ford's specific settlement offer.

Gryc and 15,000 to 20,000 fellow retirees have already begun to receive informational packets and expect to receive offers by Wednesday.

Gryc received his offer Monday; he said Ford did not detail exactly how his figure was calculated, though it is based on interest rates, life expectancy and actuarial tables the federal government uses to calculate pension obligations.

Other retirees not in the first wave will get their offers during the next year.

Retirees who receive an eligibility letter and a financial offer have a 90-day window in which to accept a buyout.

Marilyn Capelli Dimitroff, a certified financial planner who runs Capelli Financial Services Inc. of Bloomfield Hills, said as of Monday she had heard of only one Ford retiree who had received an offer.

"Folks are having more time to think about it," she said. "But the thing that everyone's looking for is, what is my offer?"

General Motors Co.'s lump sum pension offer to 42,000 salaried retirees expired July 20 — it's not saying how many opted for a lump sum — and some financial advisers who counseled retirees predicted a near even split among retirees electing to take the buyout.

But Kevin Van Dyke, president at Bloomfield Hills Financial, says it's likely a greater percentage of Ford retirees will take the lump sum.

The reason: As part of its changeover, GM will offload its white-collar pension liability to Prudential Insurance Co. of America starting in January, a safer move for those electing to stick with standard pensions. But Ford will retain responsibility for its pension liability, and pensions could be at risk if Ford defaults on its obligation.

This difference, however, hasn't entered into Gryc's decision-making process.

"It really didn't enter into my consideration and even if I had decided to remain with the pension, my concern about Ford's ability to keep paying would be minor," he said.

In Gryc's case, his wife, Joan, would receive 65 percent of his pension if he dies first. If she dies first, his children — living in an era when pensions will be more unpredictable — would get nothing from their father's traditional pension, he said.

"I don't feel my kids are going to have the same opportunity," he said.

"That's one of the reasons I'd like to be able to help them out."

The result will likely be a win-win for Ford and retirees, said Van Conway, CEO of Birmingham-based advisory firm Conway MacKenzie: Retirees who accept the lump-sum offer will receive guaranteed money and Ford can rid itself of expensive pension obligations.

"The pensions were supposed to be sacred," Conway said.

"But this will strengthen the balance sheet for Ford."

Ford
Eligible: 98,000 Ford salaried retirees and former white-collar workers.
The offer: The lump-sum payment will be based on interest rates, life expectancy and actuarial tables the federal government uses to calculate pension obligations.
When: By summer's end, offers will reach 12,000 to 15,000 randomly selected workers. The rest will be rolled out during the next 12 months.
Deadline: Retirees will have 90 days to decide once they receive the offer.

GM
Eligible: 42,000 salaried General Motors retirees and former white-collar nonunion retirees.
The offer: The lump-sum payment was based on age, health, current benefits and length of service.
When: GM offered buyouts this summer.
Deadline: Ended July 20.

Ford mobile app to map
out public charging stations

By Karl Henkel

The Detroit News
July 30, 2012

Ford Motor Co. said Monday it launched a smartphone application for drivers of its electric or plug-in hybrid vehicles.

The MyFord Mobile app will assist drivers in finding more than 9,400 public charging stations throughout the nation, the Dearborn automaker said.

The app, developed by Ford engineers for Ford vehicles, includes a public charger location database powered by MapQuest. Newly installed stations will be constantly added to the list. The app will also allow customers to manage remote charging, view current battery status and plan trips.

There are now 9,445 public stations in the U.S., according to the U.S. Department of Energy, up from about 2,500 public charging stations at the end of 2009.

Ford says that when using a 240-volt charger — what most public stations can deliver — Ford Focus Electric can fully charge in four hours and the C-MAX Energi plug-in hybrid can fully charge in 21/2 hours.

Letter from Sergio Marchionne

July 30, 2012

Sergio Marchionne, chairman and CEO for the Fiat-Chrysler Group, sent this memo to Chrysler employees on Monday:

Recently, a well-known athlete told an interviewer that his team was playing with "humble confidence." The player went on to explain that while his team believed in its ability to contend for a championship, it would not forget the hard work and tremendous effort that it took to reach a competitive level.

I thought about "humble confidence" in the context of informing you that our preliminary second-quarter results, released today, show that your continued, determined efforts are putting us on a solid foundation to compete with the best. We reported a second-quarter profit of $436 million, an improvement from the $181 million Adjusted Net Income posted in the same quarter last year when we fully repaid our government loans. For the first half of 2012, net income came in at $909 million.

We posted a Modified Operating Profit of $755 million in the second quarter, up 49 percent from the same quarter last year. We increased our cash on hand by $800 million in the second quarter, which strengthened our cash position to $12.1 billion, helping to assure our ability to continue developing our brands with best-in-class products for an increasingly demanding customer base.

Our net revenue in the quarter grew by 23 percent to $16.8 billion, driven largely by a 20 percent increase year-over-year in worldwide vehicle sales to 582,000 units. This strong performance is directly related to the overhaul of our product portfolio which continues to receive a sound cadence of accolades from third-party organizations and the media.

During the first half of 2012, our portfolio became more balanced with our car mix increasing on a year-over-year basis, showing that our car offerings are becoming more competitive. We are building on this trend, as the all-new Dodge Dart began arriving at dealerships during the second quarter. I spent time on the shop floor of the Belvidere Assembly Plant when we celebrated the manufacturing launch of the Dart, and I was impressed by the incredible level of commitment displayed by the men and women who work there. They are an example of the pride, passion and culture of doing things well that has spread throughout our company. This goes a long way to explaining why the North American car industry is coming back with a roar.

During Q2, we also showed for the first time a significantly refreshed 2013 Ram 1500, with sizable improvements to fuel economy, and the all-new 2013 SRT Viper, marking Chrysler's return to the high-performance sports car market. When they become available to the public later this year, they will play important roles in the comeback story we are authoring.

Our accomplishments, made in the face of near-universal skepticism, imbue us with confidence going forward. Living through a near-death experience has revealed the depth of courage that exists within our house. We have learned that we can accomplish great things when we marshal all of our talent and commitment to work for a common goal.

But staying humble is just as necessary to sustain our success. History teaches that it is easy to develop bad habits during good times. This is no time to cut corners, no time to become undisciplined in our execution, no time to forget how difficult it was to claw our way back to viability. We cannot afford to abandon the values of integrity, meritocracy and accountability that have sustained us thus far.

I want to thank you for the tremendous determination and commitment that have helped transform our group in only three years. Let's continue to work, with humble confidence, to earn our success every day

Ford's 2Q earnings fall 57% to $1B; lowers outlook for rest of year

Nathan Bomey
Detroit Free Press
July 26, 2012

Ensnared by a deepening economic crisis in Europe, Ford's second-quarter earnings tumbled 57% to $1.04 billion, and the company lowered its outlook for the rest of 2012.

The automaker now expects to lose $1 billion in Europe this year, nearly twice what it forecast earlier.

The good news is that Ford made $2 billion in North America, or twice its global profit. The bad news is Europe almost certainly will get worse before it gets better.

The entire European auto industry is seriously broken, and automakers are reacting slowly.

General Motors and Chrysler-Fiat will report their second-quarter financial results next week, with investors more focused than ever on what they are doing in Europe.

"Europe is a significant challenge," Ford CEO and President Alan Mulally said in a conference call. "We have made money there six out of the last eight years, but they're seeing a very significant deterioration in the economy and the industry."

Ford lost $404 million in Europe in the second quarter, but executives offered few details about their turnaround plan. Chief Financial Officer Bob Shanks said the changes would not include an executive change in Europe, where Stephen Odell leads the company's operations. In contrast, GM has replaced at least four top executives in its Germany-based Adam Opel unit.

Shanks also said the company is not pursuing partnerships with European automakers to spark a turnaround. GM recently acquired a 7% stake in PSA Peugeot Citroën and will consolidate some functions with the French automaker. But Peugeot reported that it lost 819 million euros, or $993 million, in the first half of this year.

Ford's worldwide revenue fell from $35.5 billion to $33.3 billion. Revenue in Europe fell 21% to $7.1 billion.

In the region Ford calls Asia Pacific Africa, which encompasses China, the company lost $66 million, in contrast to a $1-million profit a year earlier.

In South America, Ford made $5 million before taxes, down considerably from $267 million a year earlier. Shanks said the company has been battered by shifting free-trade policies and currency fluctuations in South America.

Fortunately, pre-tax profit in North America rose 5.3% to $2.01 billion, and its operating profit margin improved to 10.2% from 9.8%.

But Europe accounts for about 25% of Ford's global sales. Ford has laid off temporary workers and implemented shorter workdays, but with European new car sales running at the weakest rate since 1995, there are too many factories making many more cars than consumers can afford.

"This is structural in nature," Shanks told reporters. "It's going to take quite a long time for Europe to work through all of these issues."

Closing plants and laying off workers is much harder in Europe. Governments and unions are aligned to resist such moves. Then there is the reality that cost cutting will drive unemployment higher in the short term and further depress consumer spending.

Complicating the challenge is that some automakers, especially Volkswagen and Daimler, are discounting their vehicles in the weaker economies such as Spain and Italy to gain market share and draw down inventories.

Ford itself spent $189 million more than it did a year earlier on incentives in Europe in the second quarter.

Mulally said Ford would "include all the stakeholders, including the unions" in restructuring discussions while pursuing "a cost structure that allows us to produce vehicles with a reasonable return."

For the second quarter, Ford earned 30 cents per share, beating analysts' expectations of 28 cents per share.

Ford stock fell 9 cents to $8.97, its lowest closing price since Dec. 9, 2009.

GM shares slipped 22 cents to $18.80, its lowest close since its initial public offering in November 2010.

Still, two analysts say both stocks are undervalued.

Jefferies analyst Peter Nesvold, in a research note, said the "results for Europe were modestly better than feared," while Morgan Stanley's Adam Jonas said the report was "some relief for a very beaten-up auto stock."

GM Canada to invest almost $1 billion in R&D at Oshawa plant

July 25, 2012
Toronto Star
Tanya Talaga
Queen's Park Bureau

OSHAWA—After years of restructuring at General Motors, the company said Tuesday it is giving back to Canada by investing almost $1 billion in research and development at its Oshawa manufacturing complex.

The $850 million, which will be spent over several years until 2016, will be focused around engineering and engaging in research and development partnerships with Canadian universities, GM said. The research will focus on environmental technologies, reducing vehicle weight and intelligent transportation systems.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper, speaking from the GM complex in Oshawa, hailed the investment, saying it was worth it for governments to work with the automaker when it was in danger of collapse.

However, even though GM is investing almost $1 billion, the spectre of 2,000 assembly jobs about to be lost in Oshawa next year overshadowed the good news event.

"Look, obviously while this announcement was expected, we obviously are concerned when we hear about Canadians losing their jobs. That is why our focus as a government is on job creation," Harper told hundreds of autoworkers, local politicians and MP's who'd gathered for the press conference.

Premier Dalton McGuinty and Finance Minister Jim Flaherty, who is also the local MP, were in attendance at the complex, which builds the Chevrolet Equinox and Camaro models.

Harper countered questions from reporters on job losses by saying there are literally hundreds of high-paying engineering jobs supported by research investments like the one announced by GM.

While Canadian investment in R&D is "good news" it remains unknown which country would produce the vehicles that come from those efforts, Chris Buckley, president of the Canadian Auto Workers local in Oshawa, told The Canadian Press.

"I'd much prefer an announcement today that they are reinvesting in our Canadian operations as far as products that would save and create jobs," he said.

With GM closing the consolidated line in Oshawa next year, axing the jobs of some 2,000 workers currently employed there, Buckley said the Canadian government should have asked for a commitment for new vehicle assembly in Canada.

The investment is GM's payback after the unprecedented 2009 bailout by the governments of Ottawa and Ontario, which pumped $9.5 billion (U.S.) into the giant automaker's Canadian operation to avoid a broader collapse of car suppliers and parts.

After the bailout, General Motors promised to make significant capital investments back into Canada when it could.

Harper and his MP's took the opportunity in Oshawa to tout their low tax plans as the reason why the Canadian economy is doing so well as Europe crumbles.

"As the MP for Whitby Oshawa I have stood before you many times in the past several years, in good times and bad, to proudly declare our government's strong commitment to Canada's auto industry," said Flaherty.

The global economy echoes have been felt here at home, added Flaherty. "Nowhere was that more real than in the auto sector. Indeed, no sector is more familiar with competition and the realities of a global economy than the automotive sector."

Since 2008 automakers have had it rough, said Flaherty, but today they are "better positioned to compete than just a few years ago. That is because we worked at home to do what is necessary to protect our economy and jobs."

What happens in Europe, impacts Canada more and more, he added. "That is why we have been forceful in stressing Europe must address its challenges and help stabilize the global economy," he said.

There are 485,000 jobs in Ontario tied to the auto sector, said Premier Dalton McGuinty.

"I'm hopeful that we'll find some other way to deploy the 2,000 people that are working at the plant here which is scheduled for close. I appreciate the fact that GM is being transparent, but who knows what tomorrow might bring," said McGuinty.

"We remain the number one producer in North America. I think we have good reason to remain optimistic."

Survey: Ford has best industry buzz

By Karl Henkel
The Detroit News
July 24, 2012

Ford Motor Co. leads the automotive sector in brand buzz, but Toyota Motor Corp. gained the most ground during the past year, according to a mid-year branding analysis by YouGov's BrandIndex.

Ford led all automakers with a perception score of 34.1, thanks to new models including the redesigned Escape. Honda finished second with a score of 22.2 and Toyota third at 21.5.

Brands were rated using YouGov BrandIndex's Buzz score which asks respondents, "If you've heard anything about the brand in the last two weeks, through advertising, news or word of mouth, was it positive or negative?" Perception scores can be both positive and negative, with higher positive scores meaning more positive brand recognition.

Toyota's score was 11.6 points higher than it was mid-year 2011, when it had an inventory shortage following the March 11, 2011 earthquake and tsunami in Japan.

Chrysler Group LLC was the second-highest gainer during the past year. General Motors Co.'s Chevrolet brand ranked fifth for top brand buzz.

Ford C-MAX Energi plug-in
hybrid to have 550-mile range

By Karl Henkel
The Detroit News
July 23, 2012

Ford Motor Co.'s new 2013 C-MAX Energi plug-in hybrid is expected to have a range of 550 miles after the Dearborn automaker says it drove from Sacramento to San Diego on a single tank of gas.

Ford's first plug-in hybrid, which will be available this fall, has a fuel economy equivalent 95 miles per gallon, Ford said, which includes a 20-mile driving range in electric-only mode, about double that of the Toyota Prius plug-in hybrid, which gets an Environmental Protection Agency certified 11-mile driving range in electric-only mode.

Driving range identifies how many miles electric vehicles, plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles and compressed natural gas vehicles can go before recharging or refueling.

The C-MAX Energi has a projected 188 horsepower and has a 2-liter, four-cylinder engine and a battery-powered electric motor.

C-MAX Energi is like a traditional hybrid with two differences — owners must plug in the vehicle using its charge port and the car has a larger battery pack, Ford said.

The distance between Sacramento and San Diego is approximately 550 miles if traveling California State Route 99.

The vehicle will be manufactured at Ford's Michigan Assembly Plant in Wayne, along with the C-MAX Hybrid, Focus, Focus Electric and Focus ST.

GM retirees make tough call at pension buyout deadline

Weeks of considering lump sum offer come to end for 42K

By Melissa Burden The Detroit News
July 22, 2012

For 42,000 U.S. salaried workers at General Motors Co., the potentially life-changing financial decision is over, after weeks of wrestling with the choice of a lump sum buyout of their pensions or continuing to receive a monthly check.

Election forms for the lump sum had to be postmarked by Friday, and those who didn't respond will keep receiving a monthly pension check, said GM spokesman Dave Roman. GM announced the pension changes on June 1.

Among those who took the pension buyout is John Christie, 63, who retired as a project manager from GM in 2005 and lives in Washington Township. He and his wife, Jeanne, 62, a retired teacher, mailed the form Thursday. The couple decided they would come out ahead financially after meeting with a lawyer, accountant and numerous financial planners.

"It's a lot of numbers to crunch. That's what it came to," Christie said. "It's very much not an emotional decision. It's very much a financial decision."

He plans to roll the payout into an IRA and reinvest the dollars from there to cover their future financial needs. "This has to last you the rest of your life," he said.

The pension buyout was offered to 42,000 salaried retirees who left the automaker between Oct. 1, 1997 and Dec. 1, 2011. The offer is part of a broader plan by GM to offload its U.S. white-collar retirees' pensions to Prudential Insurance Co. of America, a move expected to cut GM's pension liability by $26 billion. The pensions will move to an annuity Prudential will manage starting in January.

In total, 118,000 U.S. salaried GM workers will be affected, including the 42,000 offered buyouts.

"We're not announcing the number of salaried retirees who elected to take the lump sum distribution," GM's Roman said.

The company may have an idea internally how many took that option sometime next week. But those choosing the lump sum have a window to change their mind — until Aug. 23, Roman said.

GM will begin mailing checks to retirees on Aug. 24, and electronic distributions will occur on Aug. 27, he said.

The financial implications of the payouts, part of the larger shift to Prudential, will be divulged in GM financial documents later this year.

The short turnaround time to consider the buyout option left some retirees lying awake at night, trying to figure out which choice made the most financial sense for them and their families.

After a few sleepless nights, Rick Knoth, 60, of Lake Orion opted Thursday to take the lump sum, though he wouldn't say how much he'll receive.

Knoth, who retired in November 2008 as a manufacturing engineer after 37 years, said he was concerned about the third party, Prudential, being involved in his pension and had worries about inflation affecting — essentially cutting — his payments down the road.

He will roll his payout into an IRA. While he doesn't expect to reap big returns because of the market, he thinks in the future "there's more opportunity than what is on the table today for interest rates and earnings potential."

For others, the buyout numbers didn't add up.

Retired maintenance supervisor Chet Blackburn, 64, of Tyrone Township said he turned down a buyout worth about $300,000.

Blackburn, who retired more than a decade ago, said that after meeting with his certified financial planner, Margie Shard of Shard Financial Services Inc. in Fenton, he decided to stick with his monthly pension that nets him about $1,800.

"We elected not to take the buyout because of the amount of money," he said, referring to himself and his wife, Pamela, 60, a retired GM hourly employee.

"If I live beyond 10 years, which I hope to do … that (money assuming no return) would be gone."

Blackburn said Shard ran his numbers and couldn't match his monthly pension benefit with another guaranteed income stream today.

"Once that was used up, you had nothing," Blackburn said.

Shard, president and wealth adviser at Shard Financial Services, said she met with several clients with buyout offers ranging between $200,000 and $800,000. She said the buyout proved not advantageous for most of those she worked with.

"You don't want to just take it and invest it and not have any guarantee on your future income," she said.

India's Maruti Suzuki
shuts riot-hit car plant

By Ashok Sharma
Associated Press
July 21, 2012

New Delhi — India's largest carmaker, Maruti Suzuki, said Saturday it will not resume production at a factory hit by rioting during a labor dispute until an investigation is complete into the causes of the violence, which killed one executive and injured dozens of others.

The plant, one of two operated by the company in India, halted production on Wednesday night because of fire damage caused by the rioting. The company is a subsidiary of Japan's Suzuki Motor Corp.

The body of Avnish Kumar, the human resources manager, was found badly charred in a conference room after the rioting. Of 90 injured managers and executives, 24 with arm and leg fractures are still being treated in hospitals, Maruti Suzuki said.

"What has happened is an absolute shocker to us," chairman R.C. Bhargava told reporters Saturday.

Bhargava said a new wage accord was being negotiated with the workers' union but there were no other outstanding labor issues.

He said production would not be resumed at the factory in Manesar in the north Indian state of Haryana "until we are able to identify the causes and apply correctives" to guarantee the safety of managers and workers.

The Manesar plant makes 550,000 vehicles a year, including Maruti Suzuki's most popular cars, the Swift and the DZire.

The company said the unrest on Wednesday was sparked when a worker beat up a supervisor. It said the union prevented management from disciplining the worker, blocked exit gates and "held the executives hostage."

The Maruti Suzuki Workers Union, in a statement Thursday, offered a different version of events, saying a supervisor had abused and made discriminatory comments to a low-caste worker.

Bhargava asked the Haryana state government to assist in investigating the violence. "We want to know the cause and who was behind it," he said.

The Press Trust of India news agency said police have arrested 88 Maruti workers on charges including murder and damaging property.

Labor unrest is a growing concern in India, as inflation squeezes workers' salaries. The widespread use of contract workers by companies eager to sidestep India's strict labor laws adds to friction.

Maruti Suzuki suffered three crippling strikes in 2011 which cost it market share and blocked production of tens of thousands of vehicles.

Honda, Ford, General Motors and Hyundai, among others, have also struggled with labor unrest in India.

Arbitrator rules against UAW

By Bryce G. Hoffman
The Detroit News
July 21, 2012

The United Auto Workers says an arbitrator has ruled against the union in its dispute with Ford Motor Co. over the automaker's decision to restore merit pay for salaried employees in 2010.

The UAW had challenged that move, arguing that it violated the principle of "shared sacrifice" that was the basis for a series of concessions the union agreed to in 2009 when Ford was struggling to return to profitability.

"Unfortunately, we have just been notified by telephone that the arbitrator has ruled against us on the equity of sacrifice grievance," the UAW told members in a statement posted on its Facebook page. "As soon as we have the full details and opinion of the arbitrator, we will post it and share it with you."

The company welcomed the arbitrator's ruling.

"We are pleased with the decision and respect the grievance process as a longstanding and effective way to work through issues," said Ford spokesman Todd Nissen. "More importantly, we look forward to continuing to work with the UAW as we together create the great products, strong business and contributions to a better world that will continue to deliver profitable growth for all."

Ford recalls 2013 Escape, tells owners to stop driving immediately

Wheels.ca
July 20, 2012

DETROIT – Ford Motor Co. is telling Canadian and U.S. owners of one version of the brand-new Ford Escape not to drive the SUVs until dealers can fix fuel lines that can crack and spill gasoline, causing engine fires.

The company issued the unusual warning on Thursday and said it is recalling 2013 Escapes equipped with 1.6-litre four-cylinder engines. Dealers will pick up the Escapes and drop off a loaner car that customers can use until the repairs are finished. The company is hoping to ship parts and get all the SUVs repaired in the next two weeks.

Owners can contact Ford Canada at 1-800-565-3673.

Ford says it has three reports of fires: two at the factory and one while a customer was driving an Escape. No one has been injured.

The recall affects 11,500 Escapes in the U.S. and Canada. Only 4,800 have been sold to customers. The rest are on dealer lots and will be fixed before they are sold, spokeswoman Marcey Zwiebel said. “We are obviously taking very quick action in the interest of our customers’ safety,” she said.

Escapes powered by other engines are not affected, nor are other Ford models with 1.6-litre engines, Zwiebel said.

This is the second recall of the redesigned Escape, which went on sale in June. On Saturday, the company said it would recall more than 10,000 Escapes to fix carpet padding that could interfere with braking. The new version of the SUV is among Ford’s top-selling vehicles. People bought 28,500 Escapes last month, up 28 per cent from June 2011.

The Escapes in the latest recall were built at the company’s Louisville, Ky., plant from early April through July 11.

Ford says owners should call dealers to get the problem fixed. If parts aren’t available, dealers will drop off loaner cars for use until the repairs can be made. Once the parts arrive, it will take less than an hour for technicians to replace the fuel lines, Zwiebel said.

It’s safe to park the Escapes in your garage because the fires happen only while the vehicles are moving, she said.

Older-model Escapes may also have safety problems. Government safety regulators are investigating complaints that throttles can stick on Escape and Mazda Tribute SUVs and cause them to crash. The probe, announced Tuesday by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, affects 730,000 SUVs from the 2001 to 2004 model years that are powered by V-6 engines.

The safety agency received 99 complaints from owners of the SUVs alleging 13 crashes, nine injuries and one death caused by the problem. The throttles on the SUVs can fail to return to idle when the driver takes his foot off the gas pedal, according to agency documents.

The older Escapes have not been recalled to fix the problem, although a recall is possible

Ford upset EU wants
Japan free-trade talks

Karl Henkel
The Detroit News
July 19, 2012

Ford Motor Co. on Wednesday was the first automaker to voice displeasure after the European Union announced it wants to start free-trade negotiations with Japan.

Automakers fear the European Union, which currently imposes a 10 percent tariff on Japanese car imports, could lift that tariff as part of negotiations. The EU also charges a 10 percent tariff on autos imported from the United States.

"At a time when vehicle sales in Europe are their lowest point in nearly two decades, a one-sided trade agreement that brings a wave of imports into the market without a corresponding outflow of exports could further damage the European economy and imperil the close to 12 million jobs supported by the automotive sector in Europe," Ford said in a statement.

Japan imposes no tariffs on cars imported from the European Union. But officials say Japan has regulatory barriers to imports.

Both Ford and General Motors Co. are already dealing with chaos in Europe, where there is continued concern regarding the European debt crisis, high unemployment and low consumer confidence.

The EU thinks liberalizing trade will boost the economy, but automakers say any trade agreements need to be "truly fair," in Ford's words, and offer reciprocal import-export liberalization by trading nations.

"Experience tells us that the free-trade theories espoused in official agreements are not always matched by the practice of real-world fair trade implementation," said Stephen Odell, Ford of Europe chairman and CEO, in a two-page article outlining the company's concerns.

Automakers have pointed to a free-trade agreement with South Korea implemented last year that's led to increased imports of cars from South Korea. Sergio Marchionne, chief executive at Fiat SpA and president of the European Automobile Manufacturers Association, has called the South Korea deal a "warning sign" about a potential deal with Japan.

The EU executive branch is asking member countries to give consent on talks with Japan; the EU is expected to OK the talks, which then could start next year.

EU Trade Commissioner Karel De Gucht said Wednesday an agreement would generate up to 400,000 jobs, as the EU would export more goods. "If growth in the next 20 years is likely to come from Asia, then overlooking Japan would a serious mistake in our strategy," he said.

Laid off autoworkers
still struggling

Brampton Guardian
July 19, 2012

A new report by the Canadian Auto Workers (CAW) union says laid off autoworkers continue to struggle financially and personally three years after losing their jobs.

The CAW's three-year study on laid-off workers tracked the long- term experiences of 260 workers let go from three manufacturing plants including Chrysler's assembly facility in Brampton, which lost the third shift (about 1,000 jobs) in March 2008.

The study shows that many have been forced into lower quality jobs with a significant reduction in pay following the loss of good full-time employment.

About 30 per cent of workers surveyed have taken on temporary employment.

Of those surveyed, 63 per cent said they were worried about paying their bills; 40 per cent had difficulty meeting debt obligations and nearly half said they had done without something they needed in order to cover their rent or mortgage.

"Many workers, including those currently employed, report a financial debt legacy associated with their layoffs that continues," the report said.

"This includes ongoing repayment of loans from family and friends, credit card debt, depleted savings and retirement funds, and financial losses associated with the sale of family assets such as homes and vehicles."

The report says many Brampton workers laid off were recalled back to Chrysler by 2011.

Although many had secured employment during their layoff, almost all left their new jobs to return to Chrysler because of low wages, lower incomes and lack of benefits in their new jobs, the report states.

However, many former autoworkers continue to struggle in lower paying jobs.

Many are working in contract or temporary positions and have seen wages reduced significantly— in some instances between $10 and $15 an hour less that what they earned while employed in the auto industry.

"This study provides pretty clear evidence to contradict the notion that all jobs are created equal," said CAW President Ken Lewenza.

"There's a problem in our economy when the jobs being created don't provide stability, when they fuel insecurity and when they make people less healthy. This is exactly the track we're heading down and there are huge negative implications for Canadians as a result."

Other study highlights include:

• More than on in five reported being without income for longer than one year.
• 31 per cent reported their general health has deteriorated as a result of layoff.
• 48 per cent reported they had done without something they needed in order to pay the rent or mortgage.
• Nearly 60 per cent of those who completed job retraining programs found related employment.

Ford to cut labor costs
at Canada sites

Automaker to work with CAW as rising currency hikes costs

By Bryce G. Hoffman
The Detroit News
July 18, 2012

Ford Motor Co. says it will have to work with the Canadian Auto Workers to find a way to reduce labor costs in Canada so it can ensure its factories there are considered for future products.

"We're really looking at this round of negotiations as an opportunity to improve the competitiveness of the Canadian operations," said a senior Ford of Canada official, who spoke to The Detroit News on the condition of anonymity. "Canada has higher labor costs than anywhere else we do business. It's not sustainable."

According to Ford, the base wage for its 4,500 assembly workers at three factories in Canada is $34 an hour, compared with $28 an hour in the United States. For years, the gap has been masked by favorable currency exchange rates and legacy health care costs that no longer apply.

CAW President Ken Lewenza has acknowledged that a labor cost gap exists, though he argues that it is much narrower when all costs are factored into the equation.

"We have been meeting with all three companies and trying to define active costs," Lewenza told The News in a recent interview. "Where we're apart is because of the rising Canadian dollar. We don't have any control over that."

A stronger Canadian currency raises the cost of Canadian labor.

And Lewenza says Ford's calculations of labor costs do not take into account the productivity and quality of Canadian factories.

With good reason, Ford says.

"There really is no productivity or quality advantage," the company source said.

"We have a global environment — and it's very clear to us what it takes to compete in this industry at this time," the Ford person said. "It will be really important for us to help the CAW understand what their role is from a labor perspective to secure and sustain operations in Canada for the future."

But Ford is open to creative solutions. Its bargaining team will not be coming to the table with any "firm positions" other than improving competitiveness. That is unlike Chrysler Group LLC, which has said it will be looking for a deal similar to the one it negotiated with the United Auto Workers here last fall — a deal that replaced cost-of-living wage increases with a new profit-sharing formula.

"It's really about how we make progress on that labor cost gap in a way that works for everybody and works for Canada," the source said. "What works for the U.S. and the UAW may not work for the CAW."

Formal negotiations are scheduled to begin Aug. 15 at the Sheraton Hotel in downtown Toronto.

Ford Australia cuts
one in seven jobs

By David Fickling
July 17, 2012
Bloomberg News

Ford Motor Co.'s Australian division will cut production about 29 percent and slash one in seven jobs after sales of its flagship Falcon car and trucks slumped.

The automaker will reduce output in Australia to 148 vehicles a day from 209, and offer as many as 440 severance payouts, the Dearborn-based company said in an e- mailed statement Tuesday. Ford will fire workers should acceptance of severance offers fall short of the goal, it said.

Sales of the Falcon range, which Ford Australia has been manufacturing since 1960, fell 25 percent over the first six months of this year as Australians switched to more fuel-efficient vehicles, Bob Graziano, president of Ford's Australia division, said in a telephone interview. Falcon sales dropped 65 percent from 2000 through 2011, he said.

"Customers who traditionally purchased large vehicles are looking for alternatives," Graziano said. "We're matching our daily output to the demand."

More than half of cars produced will now be the Territory sports-utility vehicle, which is seeing continued demand even as many consumers switch to smaller cars, he said.

The decision to cut production and jobs isn't related to the introduction of a carbon tax of A$23 a metric ton in the nation on July 1 or to the strength of the Australian dollar, Graziano said. The local currency has risen 19 percent against its U.S. counterpart in the past two years, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

The government will provide A$34 million ($35 million) to ensure continued production of Ford's Falcon and Territory models at Australian plants until 2016, Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard said Jan. 10.

"If we hadn't stepped forward to work with Ford, we would be talking about job losses in their thousands," she told reporters in Perth on Tuesday.

The government has committed A$5.4 billion to the car industry to 2020, Greg Combet, industry minister, said at a media conference in Sydney on Tuesday.

"Of course we're disappointed with any announced job losses," Combet said. "The simple fact of the matter is that we've got to get this industry on a more competitive footing."

Ford employs 3,014 people at its two plants in Melbourne and the neighboring city of Geelong, Neil McDonald, a spokesman for the automaker, said by telephone.

While Australians bought a record number of vehicles last month, a drop in exports has prompted automakers including Toyota Motor Corp.'s local unit to announce job cuts.

Toyota's Australian division, the country's largest car exporter, said Jan. 23 that it would cut 350 jobs, more than a 10th of the workforce at its Altona manufacturing plant in Melbourne, after a 21 percent decline in annual production.

Passenger vehicle exports from Australia fell to their lowest level since 1998 in 2011, dropping 26 percent in a year to A$1.35 billion, the country's statistics bureau said in February. Car exports have slumped 64 percent since their peak of A$3.6 billion in 2008, when they were the largest export of Australia's manufacturing industry.

General Motors Co.'s Holden division, Australia's largest producer of cars for the domestic market, said Feb. 2 that it will fire workers because of the Australian currency's strength. The company won't disclose the number of job cuts, Emily Perry, a spokeswoman, said by telephone.

Laid off women spend
longer looking for work, are less likely to land good full-time jobs, CAW study finds

Toronto Star
July 13, 2012
Stephanie Findlay and Josh Rubin

Tod MacDonald is in transition. Since the 55-year-old Windsor resident lost his job at the Electro-Motive plant in February, the former tool room machine operator is training to be a hospital dietary aid.

"The darkest period was when you started investigating, looking into second careers, there really isn't a lot out there," he said, "I'm totally well aware that for every ad out there are 1,500 people applying."

Unemployment takes its toll, said MacDonald. "There were marriage breakups. The wives didn't understand why you wouldn't go out and get a job," he said. "One guy in the plant tried to take his own life."

That toll is epidemic within the manufacturing industry, according to a study sponsored by the Canadian Auto Workers union which found laid-off workers struggle financially, experience health problems, marital woes and sleep disorders.

Some of the hardest-hit workers are women, who spent more time looking for another job, and were less likely to find something full-time and well paying.

Finding Their Way, released Thursday morning, is the second installment in a study looking at the lives of 260 manufacturing industry workers who were laid off in 2009.

One third of those reported finding full time permanent jobs with 30 hours or more per week since they were laid off. The rest were employed on short term contracts, or more casual jobs with variable hours.

One in six said they held multiple jobs.

Hourly wages had decreased for most workers. Almost one-half reported earning at least $10 less per hour than in their previous jobs.

"A significant number of participants report poor outcomes ranging from feelings of depression, disrupted sleep, physical inactivity, elevated stress and general deterioration in mental and physical health resulting from their layoff," said the report, compiled by Sam Vrankulj of McMaster University.

That was reinforced by comments from some workers who were part of the survey.

All participated in the study on the condition of anonymity.

"I'm 54. No one's going to hire me. I looked for work for almost two years. I couldn't find a job. I had some interviews, but I could tell the minute I walked in the room and they saw me they weren't going to give me the job," one said. "I doubt I'll ever find a decent full time job again. Temp jobs, picking up occasional cash work is all I can get. Not exactly the early retirement I had in mind."

"My marriage fell apart. I started drinking heavy. I'm on medication for depression," said another worker.

The study found that 45 per cent of the workers surveyed had difficulty sleeping in the wake of their layoffs, while 31 per cent reported their health had deteriorated.

A greater proportion of women than men reported being in financial crisis during their layoff, having to rely on emergency loans and other forms of support from friends and family members, wrote Vrankulj.

"Approximately 1 in 8 women participating in this study report utilizing a payday loan service to make ends meet," he said.

He said more than half the laid off workers experienced periods of at least one year without employment, while others reported periods with no income or work.

Beatrix Dart, a management professor at the University of Toronto and executive director of the Initiative for Women in Business, said women can have a harder time returning to the workforce because they are often seeking more flexibility in a job —to manage family commitments at home — than an entry-level position allows.

"Women find it much harder to commit themselves 100 or 120 per cent to a position," she said.

Sagar Parikh, professor of psychiatry at the University of Toronto, said being unemployed is a major blow to a person's self-esteem.

"Working is a primary source of identity, it's not just about money, it's about who we are," said Parikh.

Living without the routine of a job has its own set of complications, said Parikh. "When we go to work it imposes a schedule on us which is actually healthier than being on an island in Tahiti," he said.

To fight feelings of worthlessness, Parikh said people have to take a multi-pronged approach.

"There are many strategies we have to use beyond medications that involve building an alternative daily schedule with meaningful activities," he said.

Still, says MacDonald, the dietician in training, even meaningful activities can't replace a job.

"The chores dry up, you find yourself looking at the clock, it's one in the afternoon," he said, "I don't want to start watching MASH and having naps yet."

GM, Ford stocks fall
despite high sales

By Karl Henkel
July 13, 2012
The Detroit News

Sales may be brighter for General Motors Co. and Ford Motor Co., but their stocks are taking a beating on Wall Street.

On Thursday, GM's stock price dropped to its lowest level of the year — $19.33 per share — while Ford Motor Co.'s shares fell to their lowest point — $9.13 — since December 2009. Still, Ford on Thursday announced a 5-cent dividend for the third quarter, payable Sept. 4 to shareholders of record Aug. 3.

Analysts said the automakers' stock prices are more of a reflection of the global economy than the companies' own financial performance. Automakers also are dealing with higher raw material costs and increased competition.

"Investors use autos as a high beta hedge against economic slowdown. Every time Greece sneezes, the American automakers catch a cold," said Eric Selle of J.P. Morgan. "The market still sees autos as cyclical growth sector. Prior to fixing their cost structures and balance sheets, automotive companies needed growth to cover high fixed costs. Now under below-trend growth, the sector has proven the ability to post profits and generate cash."

GM's stock was down 3 percent or 57 cents on Thursday, the same day Karl-Friedrich Stracke, GM Europe President and Opel CEO, stepped down, the automaker's latest move to right its money-losing European operations.

While outside factors have contributed to GM's stock price tumble, the decline has resulted in a class-action lawsuit alleging "false and misleading statements" about company practices that led to a devaluation of its stock.

In a suit filed June 29, George G. Scott of Florida claims GM falsely assured investors it was managing production by monitoring dealer inventory levels; however, a media report said the automaker was dumping inventory on dealers. Scott purchased 200 shares during GM's initial public stock offering in November 2010.

"I don't want to say it's ridiculous, but the bottom line is the stock price went down and people are upset," said Van Conway, CEO of Birmingham-based financial advisory firm Conway MacKenzie. "There's a lot more to it to just that. There are so many things that can affect inventory levels of cars, and nobody has a perfect crystal ball.

"Under that theory, any time a stock goes down you're going to have a suit."

The company brushed off the lawsuit.

"We're proud of our track record of candor, clarity and consistency," GM spokesman Jim Cain said.

Ford's stock, meanwhile, was down 2 percent Thursday. Its shares trended as high as $13.05 in January, but have declined steadily since then and have remained under $10 for the better part of two weeks.

Ford has said it expects to lose about $570 million internationally during the second quarter — roughly 80 percent of that from European operations alone — but still produce an overall profit. Its second-quarter earnings will be announced July 25. And despite record-setting June sales in China, the Dearborn automaker will likely have to deal with a consumer confidence slowdown in the world's fastest-growing economy.

The overseas dilemma has caused investor rating services such as Standard & Poors to predict decreased profits in 2012, though the long-term outlook for 2013 appears positive.

Chrysler Group LLC is not publicly traded.

Hyundai braces for first strike in four years after union vote

By Rose Kim
Bloomberg News
July 12, 2012

Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Motors Corp. workers authorized their South Korean union leaders to stage their first strike in years to demand higher wages and reduced working hours.

More than 70 percent of Hyundai Motor's 45,000 guild members voted in favor of empowering union leader Moon Yong Moon to call for the first walkout at the company since 2008, Kim Gi Hyuk, a union spokesman, said in a text message today. At affiliate Kia, which hasn't staged a strike since 2009, those in favor of pursuing a strike accounted for 67 percent of the vote. Union leaders haven't decided whether to go on strike.

A full-blown stoppage would end the lull in labor strife that helped the two Seoul-based carmakers -- both headed by Chairman Chung Mong Koo -- increase sales faster than any other major global automotive group in the past four years. After Hyundai Motor's union was formed in 1987, it went on strike in the next 21 out of 22 years, costing what Hyundai estimates to be more than 1 million vehicles valued at 11.6 trillion won ($10 billion) in lost sales.

"The new union leadership will strongly raise issues to show off their stance," said Heo Pil Seok, chief executive officer of Seoul-based Midas International Asset Management Ltd., which oversees $2.6 billion in assets including Hyundai shares. "The important thing is that the public sentiment has changed. People won't be as understanding as before, nor tolerate situations such as production halting at plants."

Stocks slump
Hyundai Motor, Korea's biggest carmaker, has fallen 11 percent in the past three weeks and Kia has fallen 8.5 percent amid mounting concerns about labor strikes. The benchmark Kospi stock index has declined 3.5 percent during the period.

Moon sought the union's approval to call for a strike after wage negotiations that began in May failed to yield an agreement. The union walked out of negotiations in late June, citing management's lack of sincerity in the talks. Hyundai said in a July 4 statement that it's regrettable the union is moving toward going on strike despite the need for more discussion.

"The company has requested the union to resume negotiations," said Yoon Gap Han, senior executive vice president, in an internal letter to Hyundai employees. "We can come up with a solution through negotiations, not strikes."

While Hyundai Motor has periodically faced partial stoppages in the past four years because of labor disputes, none were legally sanctioned and they rarely lasted beyond several hours. The last full-blown strike occurred in 2008, when a 12-day walkout cost the company an estimated 44,645 vehicles, or 691 billion won, according to Hyundai Motor.

Biggest union
Hyundai Motor, which has the nation's biggest workers' guild, has symbolized the dwindling aggressiveness of South Korean labor unions as wages improved, unemployment rose and employers shifted production overseas. The number of South Korean work days lost on labor disputes fell to 429 by 2011, a 73 percent drop from a decade ago, according to data compiled by the nation's Ministry of Employment and Labor.

Moon, 46, was elected as Hyundai's union leader last year after pledging to be a tougher negotiator than his predecessor, Lee Kyung Hoon, who was elected to a two-year term in 2009 after pledging to curb unnecessary strikes.

Moon said in a November interview that his activism in past protests led him to be arrested four times and laid off by the company three times since he joined Hyundai Motor's union in 1988.

Violent clashes
Past Hyundai union protests have resulted in violent clashes between police and militant union members, whereby unionists would wield steel pipes and chuck Molotov cocktails at police. In 1993, demonstrations were so disruptive that the Bank of Korea lowered its gross national product estimate, citing protracted labor strife at Hyundai as a key reason.

This year, Hyundai Motor and Kia workers are demanding a 151,696 won increase in monthly base pay and seeking the companies to return 30 percent of annual net income to employees as bonuses, said Kim Gi Hyuk, a Hyundai Motor union spokesman. Other demands include switching Hyundai Motor's plants to two eight-hour shifts from the current double 12-hour rotation system, according to Kim.

Chanwook Park, a Seoul-based analyst at Deutsche Bank AG, wrote in a July 1 report that the likelihood of a protracted strike at Hyundai Motor would be low and that a stoppage would last two weeks at most. Employees going on strike would stand to lose overtime payments and the 35 shares allocated for each employee for not engaging in strikes, according to Park.

Regaining share
For Hyundai and Kia, the possible strike looms as the South Korean carmakers seek to fend off Japanese carmakers, led by Toyota Motor Corp., which are regaining market share they lost after last year's natural disasters in Japan and in Thailand.

Worldwide, Hyundai sold 2.2 million vehicles for the first half of this year, up 12 percent from a year earlier, according to an e-mailed statement. Hyundai and Kia are also bucking the slump in Europe by increasing sales in the shrinking market.

The automaker will probably report a second-quarter profit of 2.4 trillion won, according to the average of 21 analyst estimates compiled by Bloomberg.

A strike today may be a lesser blow to Hyundai Motor than in past years after the company expanded production in the U.S., China, India and Turkey during the last decade. A new plant in China started production last month and another 150,000 unit capacity plant is scheduled to open in Brazil at the end of this year, according the company's e-mailed statement.

South Korean plants accounted for 46 percent of Hyundai Motor's production capacity in 2011, down from 60 percent in 2008 when the last strikes took place, and 93 percent in 2000.

"The radical labor union was also a reason behind Hyundai's expansion overseas," said Lee Sang Hyun, an analyst at NH Investment & Securities Co. "It's an Achilles' heel to the company," he said.

CAW seeks commitment
from Big 3 in new pact

By Bryce G. Hoffman and Melissa Burden
The Detroit News
July 11, 2012

Canadian Auto Workers President Ken Lewenza is calling on Detroit's automakers to make new product commitments to Canadian factories as part of upcoming negotiations on a new national contract. But he acknowledges that a strong looney is making that a harder case to plead.

"The first thing we will try to do is get the investment necessary to secure future product," he told The Detroit News. "We also know we don't have a lot of space. The Canadian dollar is creating a little bit of a challenge."

The looney is trading near parity with the U.S. dollar. That means American automakers are paying Canadian auto workers a lot more than they were when the current contract was negotiated in 2009.

That agreement expires on Sept. 17, and formal negotiations are not expected to begin until August. But Lewenza said informal discussions are already under way with General Motors Co., Ford Motor Co. and Chrysler Group LLC.

All three automakers have made it clear that wage and benefit increases are not on the table. Instead, they want the CAW to accept the same sort of profit-sharing deals they negotiated last fall with the United Auto Workers.

"The Canadian system needs to be as competitive as the American side," Fiat-Chrysler Chairman and CEO Sergio Marchionne told reporters earlier this year. "They are not today."

CAW members make about $60 an hour in wages and benefits, while Chrysler workers in the United States receive about $50 an hour, according to the Center for Automotive Research.

Marchionne has said wage and benefit increases are off the table this year. Instead, he wants CAW members to embrace the U.S. model that provided lump-sum payments when workers achieved specific productivity and profitability goals.

The CAW has historically opposed profit-sharing, and Lewenza said that has not changed.

"That argument is pretty consistent from all three companies. We've got the message," he said. "We are opposed to profit-sharing. But this is a time in our negotiating lives when you're going to have to be creative, you're going to have to be innovative and you can't ignore the realities around you."

And current exchange rates are creating some harsh realities.

Canada most expensive
Speaking to reporters before the company's annual shareholders' meeting last month, GM Chairman and CEO Dan Akerson said Canada is the most expensive place in the world to build a vehicle. Akerson's comments came just days after the company announced plans to close one line at its assembly plant in Oshawa, Ontario, in June 2013 — a move that puts about 2,000 Canadian auto jobs in jeopardy.

CAW Local 222 President Chris Buckley told The News the line closure was "offensive," given the concessions that workers and retirees were forced to make to help GM survive its recent near-death experience.

Those concessions were part of a broader bailout deal that included $9.5 billion in cash from the Canadian and Ontario governments. In exchange, GM made a series of product commitments to Canada — including the launch of five new vehicles and the introduction of a new Canadian-made hybrid — and promised to keep at least 16 percent of the company's North American production in the country through 2016.

"GM is committed to meeting its production targets as agreed to during the 2009 restructuring," GM spokeswoman Faye Roberts said in an email. She noted that closing the consolidated line in Oshawa would not keep the company from meeting its commitments.

Chrysler, which also received a bailout, paid back the Canadian government last year and says it is under no such restrictions.

GM is still partly owned by the Canadian and Ontario governments.

Ford, which did not take a bailout, said it is taking a hard look at its Canadian manufacturing footprint.

"When it comes to future investment, labor costs are one of the most important considerations. Labor costs at Ford of Canada need to become competitive now to sustain its manufacturing operations and to position the company for consideration for future investments," the Dearborn company said in a statement. "Ford is committed to working with the CAW to find innovative, unique-to-Canada solutions to improve the competitiveness of the Canadian operations while providing employees the opportunity to earn a good living. The 2012 agreement has the potential to either improve or erode Canada's labor cost competitive position."

CAW: We are competitive
Lewenza said most of his discussions with American automakers about competitiveness have been "one-sided."

"They're saying, 'You're not competitive anymore.' But they rarely talk about their retail success in Canada," he said. "We know how to measure ourselves against global competitors — and that doesn't just mean the United States. We still have an advantage because of our national health care program. We have better infrastructure and education. We still have some significant advantages."

But automakers say those advantages are not what they used to be.

In addition to less favorable exchange rates, the game-changing contract the UAW negotiated with Detroit's Big Three in 2007 — which transferred responsibility for hourly retiree health care from the companies to a union-run trust fund — went a long way toward closing the historic labor cost gap between the United States and Canada.

Since then, GM and Ford have closed factories and reduced their Canadian manufacturing capacity.

Chrysler has not, but it does plan to eliminate the Chrysler Town & Country, one of the two minivans it produces at its Windsor Assembly Plant, in 2014.

Ford, GM post China sales records

But with slowdown in economic
forecast, hot auto market could cool

July 10, 2012
By Karl Henkel
The Detroit News

The Chinese arms of Ford Motor Co. and General Motors Co. both set sales records in June, but an economic report released Monday forecasts a slowdown in the world's fastest-growing economy.

Ford set a passenger vehicle sales record for the third consecutive month in June in the world's most highly populated country, and overall vehicle sales are up slightly during the first six months of the year, the Dearborn-based automaker said Monday.

The sales total of 52,440 — which includes passenger and commercial vehicle sales — rose 18 percent in June compared with the same month a year ago.

Passenger sales climbed 28 percent, thanks largely to the sale of the new Ford Focus, which continued to lead the company's vehicle sales with nearly 15,000 sold.

Commercial vehicle sales dropped 1 percent; Ford attributed the decrease to a "slowdown in the commercial vehicle sector."

Ford's sales totals for the first six months of 2011 had about a 1 percent bump to 277,322.

GM, in comparison, posted record sales in China for the first half of 2012 and for June. The Detroit automaker said its sales of nearly 1.42 million commercial and passenger vehicles through the first six months of the year were up 11.3 percent compared with a year earlier.

Ford is realizing the gains of entry in China, though the company could still lose money in the Asia-Pacific-Africa region during the second quarter because of expenses relating to nine newly opened or currently under-construction facilities.

But the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, which releases monthly economic indicators for major industrialized countries, says the Asian market is headed for a slowdown, China even more so than the Asian average.

Ford already noted "difficult market conditions" in India, where sales are slightly off last year's pace.

Sales in Thailand, however, were up 44percent during the first half of the year.

China's Premier Wen Jiabao said recently the country faces "huge pressure" to decelerate and may need to introduce additional stimulus measures.

The forecast about China's economy came after the Dearborn automaker already warned of international losses in Europe, an economy the OECD projects will continue its economic slowdown.

In June, GM sales in China rose 10.1 percent to 213,495 units compared with the same month a year ago.

"Despite signs of slowing economic growth in China, demand for GM products rose in all key segments in the first half of the year," Kevin Wale, president and managing director of GM China Group, said in a statement. "We expect sales growth to remain steady in the second half, driven by demand in China's interior provinces."

Buick sales were up 5.7 percent in the first half of the year; Chevrolet sales rose 1.8 percent; Cadillac sales increased 3.8 percent and sales of its Wuling brand jumped 13.6 percent over the same six months of 2011.

2013 Lincoln MKS and MKT
better in almost every way

July 9, 2012
Peter Bleakney
Toronto Star

Lincoln really wants our attention. It wants us to recognize the brand as a markedly separate entity from parent Ford — as a techno-luxury automaker that stands on its own and not just a purveyor of gussied up Blue Oval products to an aging demographic.

It's a tough image to shake. Coming later this year is the all-new MKZ mid-size sedan, which should go a long way toward rejuvenating the brand's mojo.

In the meantime, a couple of Lincolns that sit on the lower rungs of the marque's sales ladder see a comprehensive mid-cycle refresh for the 2013 model year. In showrooms now are the 2013 MKT seven-seat crossover and 2013 MKS full-size sedan, starting at $50,550 and $47,700 respectfully. You'll spot them by their redesigned (less garish) grills, incorporating finer strakes.

2013 Lincoln MKT

I was surprised to learn the Oakville-built, all-wheel-drive MKT crossover holds the dubious distinction of being the slowest-selling Lincoln. Surprised, because I consider this sizable hauler to be one of the better crossovers on the market.

Sharing the Ford Flex platform, it's quiet, refined and handles well. Okay, so it looks a bit weird, but if you're into art deco and old sci-fi movies (guilty as charged), then its adventurous styling will intrigue.

The new model rides on 20-inch wheels and comes standard with the punchy 3.5 L, EcoBoost twin-turbo, direct-injection V6 that makes 365 hp and 350 lb.-ft. of torque.

Last year's naturally aspirated 3.7 L base V6 is no longer on the menu, and the MKT is the better for it. It's better value, too — last year's optional EcoBoost model cost $2,800 more than the new model.

Also new is an adaptive damper system (continuously controlled damping) and Lincoln Drive Control, with driver-selectable modes — sport, normal or comfort — that alter the suspension, steering, engine responsiveness, and the thresholds of active safety systems.

On the road, the MKT feels surprisingly light on its feet. The EcoBoost gives it wings, and although body control is improved, the ride remains compliant. The six-speed auto also responds sharply to commands from the paddle shifters, adding a degree of unexpected fun.

The car also gets bigger and stronger brakes.

New safety systems available for 2013 include lane departure warning and aid (the electric steering will nudge you back in line if the audible warning and steering wheel vibrations go unheeded), blind spot warning, cross traffic alert, driver alert and inflatable seatbelts for the outside rear passengers.

The spacious interior benefits from a standard panoramic sunroof, a redesigned dash and gauge cluster, and an improved MyLincoln Touch, with simpler screen designs and bolder fonts. The system is still a bit slow and obtuse, however, and those hit-and-miss swipe controls for audio volume and fan speed below the screen should be banished forever. Form over function defined.

Niggles aside, Lincoln has improved the MKT in almost every measurable way, and with that robust EcoBoost under the hood, the three-row, seven-seater shows its art-deco derriere to the competition.

2013 Lincoln MKS

Built on the Ford Taurus platform, the MKS has plied the conservative full-size luxury sedan waters for a few years. Excitement is a word you would never associate with this car, and is likely a word most prospective buyers don't want to know about. So let's say Lincoln has engineered more "involvement" into the 2013 model.

Like the MKT crossover, the sedan is available only with all-wheel-drive and gets Lincoln's new adaptive damper system, Lincoln Drive Control (just normal and sport modes), greatly improved braking and the more restrained grill treatment.

The standard engine is a 305 hp, Ti-VCT 3.7 L V6, but for those in a hurry to get to the links, the 365 hp, 3.5 L EcoBoost is a $4,500 upgrade.

Speaking of links, the massive trunk now has a wider opening, so tossing in the clubs will be easier. The new passive and active safety systems introduced on the MKT are also found here.

On the road, the Lane Keeping Aid does indeed nudge you back in line if you wander from your lane above 65 km/h without signalling but, strangely, the tactile warning through the steering wheel was late in arriving.

Torque Vectoring Control, which brakes an inside wheel to help in cornering is also new.

Nineteen-inch wheels are standard, which may contribute to a ride that was busier than expected over less than perfect surfaces.

The interior is all new, from the door panels to the dash, and the sense of quality is palpable. Supple Bridge of Weir leather, fine detailing, heated and cooled seats, heated steering wheel and great THX sound make for a rich cabin experience. Back-seat room is generous.

We had a chance to compare the new model with the 2012 MKS on a closed handling course, and the 2013 is in another dynamic dimension, especially in braking performance. That said; no one at BMW will be losing any sleep.

The MKT's major North American rival is the new 2013 Cadillac XTS (starting at $48,995), and the two are remarkably similar in layout and dimension.

The Lincoln wins out with its standard all-wheel-drive and higher base content level, whereas Caddy's slick CUE interface is more user friendly than MyLincoln Touch.

Peter Bleakney reviews cars for Wheels. Reach him at pebleakney@sympatico.ca

2013 Lincoln MKS

PRICE: $47,770

ENGINE: Ti-VCT 3.7 L V6; optional 3.5 L EcoBoost V6

POWER/TORQUE: 305 hp, 280 lb.-ft.; 365 hp, 350 lb.-ft.

FUEL ECONOMY L/100 km: 11.6 city, 7.5 hwy; 2.2 city, 7.8 hwy

COMPETITION: Cadillac XTS, Infiniti M37, Lexus GS, Acura TL, Buick Lacrosse

WHAT'S BEST: value, standard all-wheel-drive, interior appointments.

WHAT'S WORST: volume and fan swipe controls, MyLincoln Touch requires patience.

WHAT'S INTERESTING: SYNC functionality now includes Wi-Fi hotspot capabilities.

2013 Lincoln MKT

PRICE: $50,550

ENGINE: 3.5 twin-turbo EcoBoost V6

POWER/TORQUE: 365 hp, 350 lb.-ft.

FUEL ECONOMY L/100 km: 13.1 city, 8.8 hwy

COMPETITION: Acura MDX, Lexus RX350, Buick Enclave, Mazda CX-9, Infiniti JX

WHAT'S BEST: EcoBoost engine, refined driving experience, second-row room.

WHAT'S WORST: third-row headroom, polarizing styling.

WHAT'S INTERESTING: built only in Oakville.

Former auto czar to testify at hearing on GM pensions

by David Shepardson
Detroit News Washington Bureau
July 8, 2012

Washington— The former auto czar and two top former aides will testify Tuesday at a House hearing on the Obama administration's decision to allow General Motors Co. to "top up" the pensions of most union retirees at Delphi Corp.

Former auto czar Ron Bloom and former auto task force members Matthew Feldman and Harry Wilson are to testify on the disparate treatment of Delphi's hourly and salaried retirees, according to a memo obtained by The Detroit News.

In May, a government investigation into the Treasury Department's role in the decision of GM to top up the pensions of most hourly union retirees at Delphi — but not salaried employees — was stymied because the three former administration officials refused to cooperate. The three did not return messages seeking comment Friday.

Special Inspector General Christy Romero, who oversees the $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief Program — the fund used to bail out banks, insurance companies and automakers — also is scheduled to testify Tuesday before the House Oversight and Government Reform subcommittee that oversees the Wall Street bailouts. Some 20,000 salaried retirees and salaried future retirees at Delphi lost pensions and insurance benefits. Troy-based Delphi, while in bankruptcy in 2009, terminated the pension plans of 70,000 people and left a $7.2 billion shortfall. The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp., the government's pension insurer, assumed the plans and must pay $6 billion of the losses.

The supplier's pension termination is the second-largest loss to PBGC in its history, behind only United Airlines' pension shortfall of $7.4 billion in 2005.

In a move that's brought harsh criticism from Congress, GM topped up the pensions of most union Delphi hourly workers and retirees, largely those of the United Auto Workers union. It took the action even though it wasn't legally obligated to do so.

GM did not do the same for Delphi's 20,000 salaried retirees and pension participants. The automaker also didn't agree to top up pensions of smaller unions.

Then-UAW President Ron Gettelfinger in January 2010 called the treatment of salaried retirees at Delphi "a grave injustice." Michigan's two U.S. senators, House Speaker John Boehner and many others in Congress have urged GM to reconsider its decision not to cover Delphi's salaried pensions.

GM has declined to do so.

In May, Rep. Mike Turner, R-Ohio, asked the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee to interview the three former officials. Friday, he praised the hearing.

"The money they used to pick winners and losers wasn't Obama administration funds, or PBGC funds — those are taxpayer dollars. Taxpayers have rightfully been demanding an account for how those dollars were used," Turner said.

Of salaried and hourly workers, about half have seen their pensions cut by PBGC as required under the law.

The Treasury has insisted it didn't make the decision to top up hourly Delphi retiree pensions, but that it understood why GM decided to do so. GM expects the agreement will cost $1 billion.

GM told a government audit released in December it made the decisions "because of its dependence" on the UAW.

In June, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. turned over 62,000 pages of documents to a group of Delphi salaried retirees that are suing over the 2009 termination of the pension plan. It's the latest effort in a nearly three-year battle by retirees from the former Troy-based parts unit that was spun off by General Motors Co. in 1999.

This is the third hearing the committee has held on the fate of Delphi retirees since November. GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney has vowed to investigate the treatment of Delphi salaried retirees if elected.

Redesigned Escape
a runaway success

June is crossover's best-selling month since debut in 2000

By Karl Henkel
The Detroit News
July 7, 2012

Ford Motor Co.'s newly redesigned 2013 Escape topped nearly all expectations in June, the crossover SUV's first full month of sales.

The Dearborn automaker sold about 11,000 new Escapes in June, comprising about 40 percent of the company's 28,500 total Escape sales as dealers clear out 2012 models.

And the 2013 models are spending little time on dealer lots before they're purchased: New Escapes are sold in an average of 41/2 days, leaving a short inventory for the refreshed model.

"We actually had people waiting in line just to test-drive them," said Mark Smith, president of Dick Smith Ford in Raytown, Mo. Escape sales are now the highest in four years, up 28 percent in June compared to the same month in 2011. That set a single-month record for the Escape since the first model was introduced in 2000.

New Escapes have a sleek, aerodynamic appearance, improved fuel mileage and bells and whistles including infotainment, active park-assist, push-button start and a hands-free lift gate.

"It sort of has this modern, athletic look to the vehicle," said Kristen Andersson, auto analyst at TrueCar.com.

"That's particularly appealing to consumers looking to make a bit more of a statement."

Smith said the new, less-boxy style look has turned off some longtime SUV buyers, but that many consumers are giving the refreshed Escape a chance because of its two EcoBoost engine options.

More than 90 percent of new Escape sales are equipped with Ford's turbocharged EcoBoost engine, which quickly gained popularity in the automaker's F-150 models.

Ford has a 30-day supply of 2013 Escapes; the healthy industry standard is between 45 and 60 days.

The shortage is partly due to a hailstorm in late April in Louisville, Ky., that damaged 3,500 new Escapes.

Smith already sold all six of his Escapes and hopes to get more.

Andersson projected an achievable goal of 18,000 to 20,000 monthly sales for the new Escape.

The Escape will be a global vehicle; in Europe and China, it will be known as the Ford Kuga.

So far, it's had even more fanfare than the redesigned Explorer. Ford earlier this year had an hour-long NBC reality series centering around the Escape titled "Escape Routes."

"Ford is good at making a buzz and good at making that splash," Andersson said.

Ford expands German
design studio for $14.4M

July 7, 2012
Alisa Pridle

Ford is spending $14.4 million to expand its German design studio so workers can better communicate and cooperate with colleagues around the world.

Ford's Merkenich-Cologne design center was designed to look like a floating boat with a virtual reality so-called powerwall to project designs and discuss them with colleagues around the world.

The Cologne design studio, first opened in 1968, is one of eight Ford design centers.

Its primary concentration is small and compact vehicles such as the Ford Fiesta and Focus.

In addition to the powerwall, which projects three-dimensional images, the upgraded center features new milling machines to make clay models for aerodynamic testing in wind tunnels.

"This powerwall will allow us to communicate in real time with our colleagues around the world so we can exchange design ideas, show progress and comment on the work in Australia, in North America and here in Europe," Martin Smith, Ford of Europe's head of design, said in a statement.

The expansion brings the structure's space to 172,200 square feet, which Smith called "a highly-motivational environment in which they are free to further develop Ford's design philosophy."

The center has open-concept space throughout.

"A design studio is not like a traditional office where people sit alongside each other in rows of desks," said Serife Celebi, Ford supervisor of color and material design.

"In a design studio, you need plenty of space and natural light in order to view designs and concepts from different angles and distances."

Tory labour reforms would drive down wages, NDP warns

July 05, 2012
Robert Benzie
Toronto Star
Queen's Park Bureau Chief

A controversial Progressive Conservative proposal to defang unions and give business greater workforce flexibility would drive down wages and undermine the middle class, the New Democrats charge.

The Tories' new 20-page "white paper" on labour law reform recommends Ontario move in the direction of many U.S. states allowing employees to opt out of unions.

While PC Leader Tim Hudak's scheme has been greeted enthusiastically in party circles and on many of the province's right-wing talk-radio shows, his political opponents are leery.

"Listen, this whole thing the Conservatives are talking about is a way of trying to find a way for people to make less money per hour," NDP House leader Gilles Bisson warned on Wednesday.

"At the end of the day a strong economy is built on people getting a decent wage. What Mr. Hudak is trying to suggest, by way of his labour reforms, would send us in a direction quite frankly (that) would hit the pocketbook of people," said Bisson.

"I don't think that's what we want to be doing."

The Timmins—James Bay MPP noted that unions have traditionally been one of the province's social pillars and lamented Ontario emulating lower-wage "right-to-work" jurisdictions like Indiana.

"We found a balance here in Canada, and in Ontario specifically, about ensuring that there is a strong labour movement that is there to protect the health and safety of workers, to negotiate on their behalf when it comes to benefits and conditions," said Bisson.

But Tory deputy leader Christine Elliott said "Ontario is clinging to outdated labour laws" and must follow the lead of other countries to compete.

"While Europe, Australia and New Zealand are ahead of us, the United States is working diligently to reform its labour laws," said the Whitby—Oshawa MPP.

"Canada is the only outlier today, falling further and further behind our major trading partners.

"So my message to these labour leaders is this: We cannot afford to compound our competitive disadvantage by clinging to labour laws that date back to the last century."

Indeed, unions have strongly opposed the plan — a reaction some Tory strategists privately welcome because they believe it could help them politically by motivating the PC base and appealing to a "silent majority" of Ontarians resentful toward the labour movement.

June US Auto Sales:
Ford sales rise 7 percent

July 04, 2012

DETROIT (AP) — Ford Motor Co. said Tuesday its U.S. sales rose 7 percent in June on strong demand for the new Escape SUV.

BY THE NUMBERS: Ford sold 207,759 vehicles in June compared with 194,114 in the same month a year earlier.

TOP SELLERS: Ford's best-seller, the F-Series pickup, was up 11 percent as housing construction recovered.

HOT MODELS: Sales of the new Escape, which debuted last month, were up 28 percent. Ford said the Escape had its best month ever at 28,500 sold.

Ford also saw strong sales for its Explorer midsize SUV, which was up 35 percent.

CAW under pressure to consider
the unthinkable: Profit sharing

By Brent Snavely
Detroit Free Press Business Writer
July 3, 2012

The CAW is under intense pressure to consider what was once unthinkable: Profit sharing instead of wage increases.

A deal cut by the UAW with the Detroit Three last year, combined with the increased value of the Canadian dollar, is giving the automakers two powerful gambits as they prepare for negotiations to replace a CAW contract that expires Sept. 17.

"I fully believe this will be the toughest round of talks we've ever had outside of the concessionary agreements we did in 2008 and 2009," said Chris Taylor, vice chairman of the CAW's Ford bargaining committee.

When the Canadian dollar ranged between 60 cents and 80 cents, it was less expensive for U.S. automakers to produce in Canada.

But now the currencies are about equal, and the Detroit Three will oppose wage increases. CAW officials say when times were good for so long the companies did not share the extra savings.

"The companies are ... overzealous relative to using the Canadian dollar in their interest," CAW President Ken Lewenza said. "I have said to all the companies, 'It is convenient for you today to use the Canadian dollar as a disadvantage ... but you didn't bring work into Canada as a result of the Canadian dollar being at 70 cents.'"

Not the UAW
The Canadian union has preferred guaranteed wage increases to profit sharing that varies widely based on each company's performance.

In fact, opposition to profit sharing was among the reasons that the CAW and UAW split 37 years ago.

While formal discussions don't begin until August, automakers have already signaled that they want to model the new contract after last year's UAW deals that included profit sharing and no wage increases for veteran workers.

The UAW agreed to sweetened profit-sharing formulas and signing bonuses -- $3,500 per person at Chrysler, $5,000 at GM and $6,000 at Ford -- and preserved a two-tier wage system. In exchange, the companies pledged to add 13,850 jobs.

The UAW's agreement also ensures that the Detroit Three's U.S. labor costs will be lower than what they pay CAW's 25,000 autoworkers now.

"We understand what the UAW did," Taylor said. "But we are not going to the table expecting to match what the UAW did."

Parity expected
Chrysler plans to ask the CAW to reduce labor costs even though the company is profitable and gaining market share, according to a person who is not authorized to discuss the negotiations publicly.

"The Canadian system needs to be as competitive as the American side," Chrysler and Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne said in January at the North American International Auto Show.

"That's a competition you can't win until you are the lowest (paid)," said Gary Taylor, president of CAW Local 1498, which represents salaried and clerical workers at Chrysler's Windsor plant. "A plant full of workers that are making minimum wage does not help the Windsor community."

In U.S. dollars, the CAW's total labor cost for hourly wages and benefits is about $60 per hour, compared with $58 for U.S. workers at General Motors, $56 at Ford and about $50 at Chrysler, according to the Center for Automotive Research.

Taylor and other CAW leaders argue that it's unfair to ask for wage and benefit cuts because Canadians face a higher cost of living and pay more for everything from milk and gas to cars.

CAW workers gave up cost-of-living raises in 2008 and 2009 and agreed that new hires can start at a lower wage then work their way up over six years to the same wage as older workers. The union gave up Christmas bonuses and some health care benefits. Now that the automakers are earning profits, many CAW workers are expecting to see some concessions restored.

"You can't continuously ask for take-backs," said Dino Chiodo, president of CAW Local 444 and chairman of Chrysler's bargaining committee.

But if the CAW doesn't shrink the labor cost gap with its U.S. counterparts, it could lose more jobs and plants.

Last month, General Motors announced it would close one assembly line in Oshawa, Ontario, in January -- putting 2,000 CAW members out of work. The 2014 Impala will be built at GM's Detroit-Hamtramck Assembly plant. Overflow production of the next-generation Chevrolet Equinox will be built in Spring Hill, Tenn. The current Impala is built in Oshawa and overflow production of the Equinox occurs there.

Ford closed its St. Thomas, Ontario, plant last fall when production of the Crown Victoria and Lincoln Town Car ended.

Given the slow recovery, Lewenza said the CAW must be "open-minded" on the issue of profit sharing.

One CAW leader suggested that the union might be willing to consider a variety of performance bonuses that preserve the union's core philosophy, while containing labor costs.

"We prefer (wage increases), but I think going into negotiations we have to be open-minded," Lewenza said.

Two unions move closer to biggest merger in Canadian labour history

Tony Van Alphen
Toronto Star
July 2, 2012

The two unions contemplating the biggest merger in Canadian labour history have moved significantly closer to reaching that goal.

A special committee of the Canadian Auto Workers (CAW) and the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers (CEP) announced Friday they have reached agreement on structure, principles and financing, and are unanimously recommending the formation of a new union to their respective boards.

"The whole process is something like climbing Mount Everest," said committee co-chairman Peter Kennedy. "We've reached the first base camp. It's a critical point."

CAW and CEP leaders started discussing the formation of a new union late last year in an effort to become stronger and more relevant to workers as the labour movement struggles in difficult economic times. The CAW represents 195,000 members while the CEP has more than 110,000.

The executive boards of the two unions will consider the report and recommendation at meetings in early July. If they show support, delegates of the two unions will vote on it at separate conventions in August and October. Acceptance would lead to a founding convention next year.

The committee report recommends a 25-member national elected board with representation from all regions, major industries and workers of colour.

It calls for the invitation of new members who are in unorganized workplaces, unemployed and retired to broaden the union's appeal and build support in communities.

The report also says the new union must develop a brand and use better techniques in organizing and attracting members.

Furthermore, the report details numerous principles that will provide the framework of a constitution for the new union. If the boards and convention delegates approve them, working groups will then handle the issues of a formal constitution, operating procedures, a name and logo in preparation for the founding event.

Kennedy, who is also the CAW's secretary-treasurer, said the special committee received input from more than 1,000 people in meetings across the country during the last few months.

"There was a lot of debate and some of the meetings were intense," he said. "But there was a tremendous amount of goodwill among everyone. Ultimately, they know it's the right thing to do."

Tim Hudak's Tory vision for a
low-union, low-wage Ontario

July 1, 2012
Toronto Star
By Cohn, Martin Regg

Remember the Caterpillar catastrophe? That London factory closing marked a low point for Ontario early in the new year.

No lives were lost, just the livelihoods of 460 skilled workers when they rejected a humiliating demand to halve their wages. They were locked out, then laid off when Caterpillar relocated to a low-wage, right-to-work state.

Now, Ontario's PC party is coming to Caterpillar's defence — by branding the victims as the villains. Yes, blame the union — because big labour can't see the Caterpillars marching.

That's the forward-looking vision you'll be hearing from Opposition Leader Tim Hudak, who has unveiled a radical anti-union agenda to help rebrand his putatively Progressive Conservative party: the end of unionism, replaced by a more "flexible" future.

Hudak eschews the loaded phrase, "right-to-work," which evokes an aggressive, Wisconsin-style anti-union movement. But make no mistake, this is a declaration of war against organized labour by a politician firing the starter's pistol in a race to the bottom.

Under his new Tory roadmap, Ontario will become a province where Caterpillars crush unions. A place where workers who still benefit from collective bargaining need not pay union dues — so that membership atrophies, money dries up, and the labour movement is disemboweled.

"The recent loss of the Caterpillar locomotive plant in London was just one example of Ontario's new reality," Hudak's latest policy paper declares ominously.

He relegates unions to the dustbin of history, comparing them to rotary phones and typewriters that have been overtaken by smartphones and touchpads. Best to unplug unions so as to placate Caterpillars — and please other predatory employers.

The Tory policy paper, Flexible Labour Markets, would undo the so-called Rand formula, the grand compromise that requires workers to pay union dues in a workplace where collective bargaining has raised their wages and improved conditions. Not even former Tory premier Mike Harris tried to unravel Rand.

Hudak is turning sharply right, and not by accident. He was flanked for this announcement by the most extreme right-wing member of his caucus — Randy Hillier, the zealous libertarian who once led the Ontario Landowners Association that resembles a rural Tea Party rump.

He boasts of being a former electrician, but revels in the role of Joe the Plumber. Hillier not only opposes union dues, his household didn't pay its full tax bill until the Canada Revenue Agency came calling — a disclosure he failed to make as an MPP. Now, the politician who flouts the rules wants to rewrite them for the rest of us.

Together, Hillier and Hudak make the specious argument that Ontario's declining manufacturing sector and rising unemployment, relative to other provinces, can be blamed on unions. Their analysis ignores the upheavals of globalization, the appreciation of the Canadian dollar, and the commodity booms that benefited other regions.

And it conveniently overlooks the historical reality that in Ontario's boom times, the private sector was far more heavily unionized than it is today. Competing against right-to-work states won't prepare Ontario's highly educated workforce for the high-tech, high-value jobs of tomorrow.

As a final sop to business, the Tories want to privatize workers' compensation by allowing private insurers to compete with the WSIB, leaving it as an "insurer of last resort" for the most risky (and costly) enterprises. First emasculate unions, then endanger the already precarious protections for injured workers.

These labour proposals are not so much thought provoking as deliberately provocative. Hudak is scapegoating organized labour when unionization rates are down.

His attack may well strike a chord with the Hillier wing of the party. But aligning himself with that anti-union streak won't resolve the deep-seated economic challenges facing all Ontarians.

Blaming labour for Ontario's lagging productivity and manufacturing setbacks, while ignoring the inertia of our business brain trust, only undermines his credibility — and the Progressive Conservative legacy

(**As Retirees and Union Members we can't let this happen - We can all have a say at the ballot box)

Market surge bypasses Ford,
GM amid Europe concerns

by Karl Henkel and Melissa Burden
The Detroit News
June 30, 2012

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rallied 278 points Friday after European leaders announced a plan to rescue banks, relieve debt-burdened governments and restore investor confidence. But lingering concerns about economic turmoil resulted in a rough ride for Ford Motor Co. and General Motors Co.

Ford shares closed at $9.59 per share, down 5 percent, a day after the Dearborn automaker predicted it would lose about $570 million internationally in the second quarter, due to ongoing European troubles.

Ford said Thursday it expects to remain profitable for the 12th consecutive quarter, driven by the success of Ford North America and Ford Credit. But it said it will not be as profitable as it was during 2011's second quarter, when it earned a $2.4 billion profit. Friday's close, the last of the quarter, marked the first time since Nov. 29 that Ford shares closed below $10.

A $570 million loss would not only triple Ford's first-quarter international losses, but triple many analysts' loss predictions as well. Ford lost $190 million internationally in the first quarter, 80 percent of that in Europe.

Itay Michaeli, analyst for Citi Investment Research, which lowered Ford's target share price from $15 to $14, said the losses overseas aren't surprising, but their accelerated nature when compared to the first quarter is cause for concern.

"As conditions in Europe continue to deteriorate, we could see a reduction in demand for goods imported from the United States," said Alec Gutierrez, senior market analyst of automotive insights for Kelley Blue Book. "This could negatively impact financial markets as stocks of export-dependent firms take a hit in anticipation of revenue declines."

Debt-ridden Italy and Spain, a Greek election, fright regarding the Euro and low consumer demand have hampered auto sales this year. Gutierrez said that could lead to stagnant hiring trends, which in turn could lead to drops in U.S. consumer confidence and auto sales.

Morgan Stanley on Friday cut Ford's target share price from $18 to $17, and said the automaker has "immediate needs to address excess capacity through near-term action." Ford says it has no plans to close any European plants.

Morgan Stanley's European team estimates Ford's European capacity to be lower than competitors other than Fiat SpA.

GM's stock closed Friday at $19.72 a share, down 10 cents or one-half percent from its previous close.

Chrysler Group LLC is not publicly traded.

GM spokesman Jim Cain said Friday that the company is providing no guidance on second-quarter performance in Europe. GM lost $256 million before taxes and interest in Europe during the first quarter. Last year, it lost $747 million there.

Chairman and CEO Dan Akerson told reporters in Chicago on Thursday that he is concerned about the soft European economy in the second half of the year.

He told shareholders this month that Europe remains the company's biggest challenge.

On Thursday, a board for GM's Opel brand in Europe approved a plan to bring the automaker to profitability in Europe.

Colin Langan, an analyst with UBS, said Friday he expects GM will lose $500 million in Europe in the second quarter and anticipates a $1.3 billion full year loss in Europe. He said he expects GM's losses to continue for the next four years.

"The major opportunity to cut costs is through capacity reductions, which won't be until 2016," Langan wrote in an email. "There are other means of finding cost savings, but the savings will be smaller and not enough to offset the current losses."

Global problems to result in higher quarterly losses for Ford

By Karl Henkel
The Detroit News
June 29, 2012

Ford Motor Co. said Thursday it expects its second-quarter international losses to triple compared with the first quarter, brought on by deteriorating economic conditions in Europe, and investment and growth costs in its North American and Asia-Pacific-Africa regions.

Pre-tax losses could balloon to $570 million in the second quarter, which ends this week, according to a filing the Dearborn automaker made with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

"The international situation has gotten worse than Ford or anyone else expected," said Michelle Krebs, senior analyst at auto website Edmunds.com.

The Dearborn automaker had a pre-tax loss of $190 million during the first quarter. Approximately 80 percent of those losses came from Europe alone.

Ford said it expects to remain profitable for the 12th consecutive quarter, driven by the success of Ford North America and Ford Credit.

But it said it will not be as profitable as it was during 2011's second quarter, when it earned a $2.4 billion profit.

Ford said its international operations continue to face "increasing pressure," particularly in Europe, where a massive debt and currency crisis as well as low consumer demand have put a damper on sales.

The company has seen profit margins decline and doesn't predict the trend will change for the foreseeable future, though the company stressed Thursday it has no intention of closing any of its European plants.

"It's very difficult to do," Krebs said. "European plant closures are rare. Europe is still an important market."

Ford isn't alone in trying to combat the European debt and economic crises. General Motors Co. posted a $300 million loss in Europe during the first quarter.

Ford spokesman Mark Truby told The Detroit News earlier this month that the auto industry "has not faced up to the overcapacity issues despite the severe economic issues since 2008."

Ford South America is facing "growing competitive and pricing pressures," according to the company, as well as changes in government policies affecting trade and access to foreign currency.

Other losses in Asia-Pacific-Africa are associated with nine newly opened or currently under-construction facilities.

Newest Ford technology
senses distraction, stress

By Karl Henkel
The Detroit News
June 28, 2012

Dearborn —Ford Motor Co., which earlier this week announced developments to curb traffic delays, is now targeting driver distractions.

Researchers at the Dearborn automaker are developing a technology based on readings from sensors placed on the steering wheel, seat and safety belt that can measure a driver's heart rate, breathing rate and body temperature. The sensors are similar to those on some treadmills.

Coupled with a driver workload estimator — an algorithm that uses data from existing radar and cameras combined with input from the driver's use of the accelerator, brakes and steering wheel — a vehicle could silence in-car distractions if it deems the driver is under too much stress or is too distracted.

Existing sensors and cameras can determine if surrounding traffic is too heavy or if accelerator pressure has increased. In other words, the system will determine if the driver is already too preoccupied with driving to deal with an outside distraction.

The vehicle could then trigger a "do not disturb" feature through MyFord Touch that would delay an incoming phone call or text message until the situation becomes less stressful. Alert drivers who are not distracted could field phone calls and text messages as usual.

"While these features are still in research, they show significant opportunity for us to leverage data already being captured by the vehicle and apply an intelligent decision-making system to simplify the driving experience," said Gary Strumolo, manager of vehicle design and infotronics of Ford Research and Innovation.

There is no timeline for when this technology could first appear in Ford vehicles.

Ford plans broaden its traffic park assist technology to include backing into perpendicular parking spaces and that it is working on another technology to help improve traffic flow.

Ford retiree group critical of company's lump sum pension offer

By Jaclyn Trop
June 27, 2012
The Detroit News

An association for Ford retirees has hired consultants, lawyers and accountants to review Ford Motor Co.'s plan to offer lump sum pension payouts this summer.

The FAIR (Ford Actions Impacting Retirees) Alliance is the second major group to speak out against a Detroit automaker's plan to narrow its global pension obligations by offering a lump sum in place of the annuities retirees currently receive.

The General Motors Retirees Association sent a letter to General Motors Co. Chairman and CEO Dan Akerson earlier this month, protesting GM's announcement that it will offer to buy out the pensions of 42,000 U.S. salaried retirees.

FAIR Alliance sent a letter to members earlier this month.

The letter argues that the plan, which takes effect in August when the first wave of 98,000 white-collar retirees receives formal offers, is a sure win for the automaker and certain loss for anyone who takes the lump sum.

"It's a benefit to the company," Don Whitehouse, president of Madisonville, Ky.-based FAIR, said Tuesday. "It's not a benefit to us, unless somebody's dying."

"I've only had one person — of all the people we've been in contact with — who said he'd take the buyout no matter what. His wife died, he has no kids and he has cancer. His doctor gave him three months to live."

Since Ford's unprecedented April announcement that it would offer payouts, the automaker has emphasized that retirees have a choice whether to receive their pensions in a lump sum or in monthly installments, according to Ford spokesman Jay Cooney.

"It is a voluntary opt-in program," Cooney said in an email Tuesday. "The decision to take a lump sum is highly personal and dependent (upon) one's unique set of circumstances."

Ford's $74 billion global pension liability was underfunded by $15.4 billion at the end of 2011. The payouts are part of a strategy to close the funding gap and reduce its debt.

The first wave of offers will reach 12,000 to 15,000 randomly selected workers by the end of the summer. Ford will roll out the rest of the offers over 12 months, Cooney said.

The letter to FAIR Alliance members argues that the existing pension system is the best one for retirees.

"There is no possible way that we can receive better returns on investments with the existing stock market, CDs or any other financial choices without taking a loss and Ford Motor Co. knows that very well," read the letter from Whitehouse.

Whitehouse declined to say how many retirees belong to the group but said FAIR has members in 48 states. About 28 percent of FAIR's member don't use computers, which means that they're missing the Blue Oval, the Ford's official digital newsletter for salaried retirees.

Sandy Mooradian, 70, of Northville is one of those retirees who doesn't use email. The former Ford analyst, who spent 34 years with the automaker, said it would be difficult for most retirees to manage the lump sum on their own, especially in a tough economy.

"Everyone I've talked to is not interested in the plan, including myself," Mooradian said. "As you get older and become more frail, how will you make sure you have enough monthly income?"

"How would you live?"

Ford takes wraps off
new luxury F-150

On sale this fall, Limited to be pricier than the Platinum

By Karl Henkel
The Detroit News
June 26, 2012

Ford Motor Co. today unveiled a luxury version of its best-selling F-150 pickup, calling it the most refined model to date.

The 2013 F-150 Limited, the latest high-end trim offered by the Dearborn automaker, will arrive at dealerships this fall.

A price point will not be set until later this year, though it will be priced above the Platinum F-150, another luxury model, which has an MSRP of $44,635, according to Ford's website.

The 365-horsepower F-150 Limited will come with a 3.5-liter Ti-VCT EcoBoost engine and will get 22 highway miles per gallon in the two-wheel-drive model.

"The F-150 Limited signifies the highest levels of design refinement, luxury and technology that we've ever offered in a Built Ford Tough pickup truck," said Raj Nair, Ford Group vice president for product development. "The F-150 Limited reflects a growing trend — more and more customers today have high expectations for luxury and convenience, yet their needs call for a truly capable truck."

The new F-150 Limited will come with red and black full-grain leather seats, standard moon roof and rearview camera.

The truck comes in three colors: Ruby Red Metallic Tinted Clearcoat; Tuxedo Black Metallic; and White Platinum Metallic Tri-Coat. It has 22-inch polished aluminum wheels.

The F-150 Limited will also be equipped with MyFord Touch powered by SYNC, for coordinated operation of cell phones, music, navigation and interior environmental control.

More than 30 percent of F-150 sales — which have topped all truck sales for 35 consecutive years — come from high-end trims, which range in price from about $35,000 to $50,000.

Ford's previous luxury truck models include the King Ranch F-150, launched in 2001, and the F-150 Platinum, which was launched in 2009.

GM still pitching pension buyouts

Some are leery of changes; white-collar reps to meet

By David Shepardson
Detroit News Washington Bureau
June 24, 2012

General Motors executives are continuing to lobby white-collar retirees on major changes pending for their pensions, but not everyone has yet embraced the plan.

The two sides held an hour-long conference call Friday, called by GM, to discuss the planned pension buyout offer to 42,000 salaried retirees.

Also, GM is offloading $26 billion of its $134 billion in pension obligations to Prudential Insurance Co., which means about 118,000 salaried retirees will see their pensions swapped for lump-sum payments or paid by Prudential, not GM.

GM's decision to terminate its salaried pensions and transfer them to Prudential has angered many retirees. Some have threatened to stop buying GM vehicles.

Retirees have stopped short of calling for a formal boycott or demonstration at GM's Renaissance Center headquarters in Detroit.

However, leaders of a group representing white-collar retirees plan to hold a conference call Monday to decide their next steps.

Jim Shepherd, the General Motors Retiree Association president, wrote GM Chairman and CEO Dan Akerson this month questioning the pension plan changes, noting that retirees will lose the protection of the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. — the government's pension insurer — along with federal law that governs employee pensions.

GM officials on Friday's call said the July 20 deadline to decide whether to accept the lump sum will not be extended. "It was mostly a question and answer period," said Shepherd in an interview after the call.

GM spokesman Dave Roman said pensions were the topic of a regularly scheduled call Friday with presidents of GM retiree clubs across the country.

He declined to provide any details of the meeting.

The automaker invited about 30 or 40 retirees — leaders in the GM Retiree Association — to the conference call, said Wayne Williamson, GMRA treasurer/secretary.

Williamson, 74, of Bay City, a retired GM senior buyer in purchasing, said the call didn't leave enough time for questions — or result in any good answers.

"We're going to go after them," he said.

He said one option may be an informal boycott by individual members.

Williamson said GM hasn't explained why it offered lump-sum buyouts to some retirees, but not to others.

The key issue is "what happens if Prudential bellies up, which is highly improbable," Shepherd said.

"But 10 years ago, who would have felt that GM would file for bankruptcy?"

About 10,000 people attended 75 meetings GM held across the country to answer retirees' questions about pension changes.

Roman said GM has received thousands of calls to its call center and hits to its website and boycotts are not coming up.

Cindy Brinkley, GM's vice president of global human resources, defended the plan in a letter to Shepherd last week.

"We believe that these changes are good for retirees … and for the company, which will see its pension obligation reduced significantly," wrote Brinkley.

"Strengthening our balance sheet will allow GM to do something we haven't done in decades — focus our attention and resources on being the best carmaker we can be."

In a follow-up letter Thursday, Shepherd said he agreed that "GM management must prove they can create a low debt, high equity driven company with an investment grade rating as high or higher than Prudential enjoys today.

"This should include honoring its pledge to fund the salaried plan liability. It seems GM favors funding union plans, similar to the way the Delphi union plan was funded, but not its salaried retiree plan."

Feds investigate '11
Ford Explorer, Chrysler 200

By David Shepardson
Detroit News Washington Bureau
June 23, 2012

Washington— The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Friday it is opening investigations into 170,000 2011 Ford Explorer and Chrysler 200 vehicles over complaints of steering problems and engine stalling.

NHTSA said it was opening two preliminary investigations.

The agency is investigating 87,288 Chrysler 200 and Chrysler 200 convertibles for engine stall.

NHTSA has received 15 complaints alleging incidents of engine stall in the 200s with a 3.6 liter engine. All 15 incidents reported stalling without warning during low-speed decelerations such as braking for a stop sign or traffic light.

NHTSA didn't identify any crashes or injuries.

Chrysler spokesman Eric Mayne said the "V-6 is an award-winning engine featured in 12 models across three brands and has accumulated millions of miles of problem-free driving. Performance by any engine is subject to numerous factors, from fuel quality to software. The complaints in this case occurred infrequently and did so only in low-speed, low-risk situations, such as coming to a stop. However, Chrysler Group takes this action very seriously and is working to assist NHTSA with its investigation."

In the second investigation, NHTSA said it is investigating 83,000 2011 Ford Explorer SUVs.

NHTSA said it has received 15 complaints alleging loss of power steering assist and increased steering effort in model year 2011 Ford Explorer vehicles equipped with Electric Power Assisted Steering.

NHTSA said it has also identified field reports provided in Ford's Early Warning Reporting data submissions that relate to the alleged defect.

Some of the complaints indicated observing a power steering warning message when the failure occurred. In some cases, the condition was corrected by turning the vehicle off and restarting. However, some reports indicate the condition returned after restarting the vehicle.

NHTSA has no reports of crashes or injuries.

Ford spokeswoman Marcey Zwiebel said the company is "fully cooperating with the agency on" the investigation.

More firms to offload pensions

June 21, 2012
•By Zachary Tracer and Tim Catts
•Bloomberg News

General Motors Co.'s deal to cut pension obligations by $26 billion and shift plans to Prudential Financial Inc. is poised to fuel more transfers as U.S. firms face a retirement-funding shortfall the size of Greece's debt.

MetLife Inc. and Prudential are among insurers that expect the GM deal to encourage more corporations to offload plans. Pension liabilities exceed assets by more than $435 billion, according to a Bloomberg review of data disclosed by firms in the Russell 1000 Index of large U.S. companies. Greece, facing demands for austerity measures in exchange for rescue funds, had total debt of about $450 billion at the end of 2011.

Employers who endured two stock-market crashes in a decade and 10-year Treasury yields near a record low may be tempted to follow GM's lead by paying insurers to take the risk that market returns are inadequate or that beneficiaries live longer than expected.

Transferring the obligations can reduce swings in earnings tied to securities and relieve companies of the need to manage large pools of money.

There "may be a greater willingness to pull the trigger and execute a transaction," said Robin Lenna, executive vice president of MetLife's corporate benefit funding group. "They have a model. Somebody already did it in a big way."

GM, the largest automaker, said most of the 118,000 retirees and surviving beneficiaries affected by the shift will get Prudential annuities, with about 42,000 having the option of lump-sum payments. GM pensions were underfunded by $25.4 billion, the largest gap among the biggest U.S. companies, as of Dec. 31. The Detroit-based firm had global pension obligations of about $134 billion.

GM will contribute $3.5 billion to $4.5 billion in cash to the salaried pension plan to help fund it and purchase the annuities from New Jersey-based Prudential, GM Chief Financial Officer Dan Ammann said.

The transaction will be completed by the end of this year, the company said.

"The pension world will forever remember this transaction as the beginning of the era of pension de-risking," said Dylan Tyson, head of pension risk transfer at Prudential, the No. 2 U.S. life insurer. "This is a market whose time has come."

The employers most likely to transfer obligations have high cash levels and "meaningful" underfunded retirement obligations, said Stephen Brown, an analyst at Fitch Ratings.

Timken Co. is among firms that may follow GM's path. The maker of bearings has spoken with Prudential and other insurers about annuitizing its pensions, which have $2.6 billion in assets and $3.1 billion in liabilities, said Glenn Eisenberg, the Ohio-based company's executive vice president of finance and administration.

Timken this year began offering retiring employees the option of receiving benefits in a lump sum, Eisenberg said. Contributions to the company's pension plans consumed $521 million since 2010 and are expected to cost $165 million this year, according to a company filing. Every 25 basis point reduction in the discount rate the company uses causes its liability to increase about $70 million, Eisenberg said.

"We had put cash into the plans and gotten them fully funded, only to see interest rates continue to drop over the last decade while asset returns were volatile," Eisenberg said. "That caused these big unfunded positions, and we had to throw more cash into it."

To pay for the transaction, Timken must fully fund the plans and contribute about an additional 15 percent of their assets as a premium to compensate the insurance company it eventually chooses, he said.

The cost may discourage other employers from striking deals with insurers, said John Ehrhardt, a principal at consulting firm Milliman Inc. Ford Motor Co. is offering lump-sum payments to about 98,000 U.S. salaried retirees and former employees.

Ford rejected offloading its obligations to a separate company in favor of investing in global expansion and new models and paying dividends, CFO Bob Shanks said.

No-cost banking: The end of an age

Globe & Mail
Rob Carrick

June 19, 2012

The more seniors there are, the more expensive it is to give them freebies and special discounts.

So with our aging population, it's easy to see Toronto-Dominion Bank 's decision to stop opening no-cost bank accounts for clients aged 60 and older as a trendsetting move. As of March, TD Canada Trust branches have been offering three different account packages to older clients with a 25-per-cent discount off regular account fees. Other banks and credit unions still offer no-cost banking to seniors, but you can bet they'll be studying TD's move.

Canada's second-largest bank has forestalled a backlash by allowing more than two million current holders of its no-cost Plan 60 account to maintain the status quo. But clients who turn 60 now have to pay fees of $8.20 to $22.45 a month after discounts unless they maintain large enough balances to qualify for fees to be waived entirely. That takes a minimum $2,500 to $5,000 a month, depending on the account.

TD spokeswoman Barbara Timmins said the free seniors account was chopped as part of a regular review of how the bank's products mesh with changing demographics.

"With an evolving boomer group, that means offering accounts to customers over 60 that reflect their diverse situations – whether that's something basic, mid-range or premium," she said. "We also have to balance those considerations with the bank's longer-term needs for continued growth."

Statistics Canada estimates that the country's population could exceed 40-million by 2036, and that as many as 10-million to 11-million people could be seniors. Offering free banking to that many people is a lost revenue opportunity of major proportions. Banks would be extra sensitive to that in today's world, where low interest rates and treacherous financial markets have hurt other lines of business.

But there's another trend at work here. Bluntly put, many baby boomers don't need banking discounts.

"The seniors of today are quite different from what they were back when the senior's plan was invented [decades ago]," said David McVay of McVay and Associates, a financial services consulting firm. "Many are still working, and many are better off than [seniors] were back then. The question at the banks is always, why are we discounting banking services for what turns out to be our wealthiest customers?"

Other banks may be asking that question, but they still offer no-cost accounts to seniors. Bank of Nova Scotia's Scotia Plus Program for Seniors offers cost-free banking for seniors with a refreshing lack of fine print or hidden fees. It also kicks in when customers turn 5 9, not the usual 60. Bank of Montreal and Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce also offer free plans to seniors.

A couple of other banks have also done away with dedicated seniors accounts, but they haven't been so bold as TD in eliminating free banking for this group. Royal Bank of Canada offers a seniors' rebate that offsets the monthly cost of a variety of accounts to varying degrees. Note: In some cases, the client may need to have certain RBC products to qualify for a full rebate. HSBC Canada offers a fee waiver on an unlimited chequing account to seniors.

Credit unions are also an option for seniors seeking no-hassle, no-fee bank accounts. Here's what Southern Ontario's Meridian Credit Union offers to clients age 60 and older: Free unlimited debits, one free order of cheques a year, no charge for paper monthly statements, no charge for using a passbook (remember those?), free certified cheques and travellers cheques, a limited number of free money orders and discounts on safe deposit boxes.

TD's updating of its seniors accounts represents a modernization in more ways than one. With two of the three accounts, customers must pay $2 for a monthly paper statement and $2.25 for a passbook. Otherwise, they can use paperless recordkeeping, where you monitor your account online or download online statements. Both paper statements and passbooks are free to existing Plan 60 clients.

The aging population may eventually put an end to free chequing accounts for people 60 and older, but seniors shouldn't feel forsaken. Notice the growing numbers of financial planners in branches to help with retirement planning, and also the availability of sit-down teller windows and low ATMs. Wait a second – if seniors are such important customers, doesn't that suggest they should insist on free banking? Just asking.

Banking charges for seniors

Toronto-Dominion Bank's TD Canada Trust branches have stopped offering free chequing to seniors signing up for a new account. Options for the bank's clients aged 60 and over now include three chequing accounts offered with a 25-per-cent discount.

Account
Monthly fee (after discount)
Fee waived with this minimum balance
Number of debit transactions

1. Select Service
$22.45
$5,000
unlimited

2. Infinity
$11.20
$3,500
unlimited

3. Value Plus
$8.20
$2,500
25 per month

Existing customers of TD's no-cost Plan 60 account can continue with that option.

2013 Ford Escape delivers
more with less

Doug Guthrie
June 14, 2012

There's plenty of anticipation for Ford's all-new 2013 Escape.

As I drove a pre-production model on Interstate 94 toward some interesting backroads west of Ann Arbor, passing drivers shouted questions through their open windows.

"Is that the new one?" asked a man in a current model Escape with Canadian license plates.

"Awesome. I want one," said another guy in a Chevrolet pickup. I suspect he was a Ford fan driving the boss's truck.

While the new Escape isn't perfect, fans like this won't be disappointed when it arrives in showrooms this month. Already on sale in Europe as the Kuga, the new Escape is strikingly styled outside and comfortably appointed inside.

When Ford introduced the Escape in 2000, some said it wasn't enough truck to be called a sport utility vehicle. Yet it became the nation's top-selling SUV.

The new Escape completely sheds the boxy truck look of the past and embraces its true crossover identity. The grille reveals the Focus family connection. The Escape and more than a dozen other Ford vehicles have been built on the same compact platform.

With its car-like styling, the new Escape appears smaller than the old model, but it actually has more interior space. The wheelbase is almost three inches longer, adding leg room for back seat passengers. The shape is more aerodynamic and smooth panels underneath also increase fuel efficiency. Shutters automatically open and close behind grille openings.

Although the Escape no longer handles like a truck, it still isn't as nimble as its lower-to-the-ground compact brother, the Focus.

The Escape is wider, lighter and has a lower roofline, but it has just as much ground clearance as the previous model, keeping its center of gravity high. There was noticeable body lean during quick lane changes but the Escape felt comfortable and secure when cruising on the highway or following winding roads.

Meet 'Samantha'
Inside, the Escape is upholstered in the latest soft-touch materials and offers all of Ford's new technology. The eight-inch touch screen in the center console — in upscale models — can play video from a portable source, but only when the transmission is in park.

I had some difficulty operating the new simplified MyFord Touch hands-free system for communication, entertainment and navigation. But after a 20-minute session with Alan Hall, Ford's technology communications chief, who was sitting in the front seat with me, I was barking effective commands at "Samantha." Yes, that's the name Ford's engineers have given the system's recorded female voice — just Sam, when you get to know her.

Sam recognizes 10,000 commands, up from 100 in Ford's first-generation Sync. It's a good idea to take the dealer's offer of a personal instruction session. Ford also has a website with "Sync My Ride" Q&A, video tutorials and a live chat room.

Front-wheel drive, a six-speed automatic transmission, and a 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine that gets an estimated 22 mpg city and 31 highway are standard. There are two more engine options, including a 1.6-liter EcoBoost turbocharged engine that gets the model's best fuel economy at 23 city and 33 highway. The top horsepower option is a 2.0-liter EcoBoost turbocharged four-cylinder that gets 22 city and 30 highway mpg. Optional all wheel drive available only with the EcoBoost engines slightly reduces fuel economy.

Ford's four-cylinder EcoBoost system has a single turbocharger that isn't as refined as V-6 EcoBoost engines with twin turbochargers. The Escape has noticeable acceleration hesitation before the single turbo builds boost. But the 2.0-liter engine provided plenty of passing power.

The Escape no longer offers a V-6 engine or a manual transmission. Not with the 240 horsepower, 2.0-liter four-cylinder providing just as much power and better mileage. Properly equipped, the Escape can tow up to 3,500 pounds.

The Escape hybrid also is gone because all of the new engines beat its highway fuel economy. They don't come close to the hybrid's city EPA number of 30 mpg, though. Ford will introduce another small crossover hybrid called C-Max this summer.

A new feature introduced with the Escape is the hands-free operation of the rear liftgate. When the key fob is in your pocket and your arms are wrapped around two bags of groceries, the rear hatch electronically opens when you swing your foot under the rear bumper. Two sensors under the bumper look for not only your foot but an attached leg too, so Ford claims rolling balls, running dogs and bumper-scrubbing hands won't accidentally trigger the opener.

Working out the kinks
The fit and finish inside and out are a testament to advances in production quality. The electronic features are enticing, but it's how the doors hang with body lines perfectly matched that show how far U.S. manufacturers have come.

Close the Escape's front door and it makes a satisfying thump that only a few years ago was exclusive to luxury cars. But closing one of the Escape's rear passenger doors, I heard a different, more hollow sound. I told Escape's chief engineer Eric Loeffler about the doors and a persistent sound of wind tumbling past the side windows when traveling at 70 mph. He was ahead of me on the wind noise, saying new door seals already are being used and assemblers are paying close attention to mirror mounts at the assembly plant in Louisville. I suspect the back door is getting some attention, too.

Suggested price of the base S model is $23,295, including an $825 delivery fee. An SE model will start at $25,895, the SEL for $28,695, and top-level Titanium $31,195. The hands-free liftgate is standard on Titanium and is part of an almost $1,900 option package on the SEL.

2013 Ford Escape
Price: $23,295 to $31,195, plus $825 delivery ($36,525 as tested)
Type: Five-passenger, four-door compact SUV
Engines:
2.5-liter, direct injected, four-cylinder
1.6-liter, EcoBoost turbocharged, four-cylinder
2.0-liter, EcoBoost turbocharged, four-cylinder
Power:
168 horsepower; 170 pound-feet of torque with 2.5-liter engine
178 horsepower; 184 pound-feet of torque with 1.6-liter EcoBoost engine
240 horsepower; 270 pound-feet of torque with 2.0-liter EcoBoost engine
Transmission: Six-speed automatic
EPA gas mileage:
22 mpg city / 31 mpg highway with 2.5-liter engine and front-wheel drive
23 mpg city / 33 mpg highway with 1.6-liter EcoBoost engine and
front-wheel drive
22 mpg city / 30 mpg highway with 1.6-liter EcoBoost engine and
all-wheel drive
22 mpg city / 30 mpg highway with 2.0-liter EcoBoost engine and front-wheel drive
21 mpg city / 28 mpg highway with 2.0-liter EcoBoost engine and all-wheel drive

Report Card
Overall: HHH
Exterior : Car-like styling that is wider, longer, lower and lighter
Interior: More space, more upscale materials and the latest technology
Performance: Improved power, economy and handling
Pros: Lots of improvements to an already popular vehicle
Cons: Some will miss the smoother power of the V-6

Grading Scale
HHHH Excellent HHH Good
HH Fair H Poor

Ford makes big investment
in Louisville

By Bruce Schreiner
Associated Press
June 13, 2012

Louisville, Ky.— Ford has transformed a nearly 60-year-old assembly plant into the new home of the redesigned Escape, its entry in the ultra-competitive small SUV category. And it's bolstered the workforce to make the vehicle.

Ford Motor Co. invested $600 million to revamp its Louisville Assembly Plant, which features a new body, paint and trim assembly lines. The plant produced Ford Explorers from the early 1990s until late 2010.

On Wednesday, the plant is celebrating the launch of the new Escape, which goes on sale this month.

The plant's hourly workforce will swell to about 4,200 once a third shift is added this fall, the company said. As a spinoff, suppliers are adding more than 900 jobs in support of Escape production, Ford said.

Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer calls it a "generational type of investment" by the automaker.

"It's a wonderful shot in the arm for our economy," he said.

Many of the jobs were filled by incumbent Ford workers in Louisville or from places where factories closed or downsized.

But some 18,000 applicants scrambled for about 1,800 new jobs at the plant; those jobs have since been filled.

Once the third shift cranks up, the Louisville plant will rank among the largest workforces at Ford's domestic assembly plants. The plant's wage scale ranges from nearly $16 per hour for new hires to about $28 per hour for the most skilled workers.

That work force had shrunk to about 1,100 when the last Explorers rolled off the assembly line at the Louisville plant in late 2010. Production of that mid-size SUV has shifted to a Chicago plant.

Some employees thought they had pulled their last shifts at the Louisville plant when it was idled.

"When we went down, there were a lot of people who didn't believe we'd ever retool," said Steven M. Stone, the UAW chairman for the Louisville Assembly Plant.

Now, the remodeled plant is touted as the most flexible in Ford's domestic assembly chain, capable of producing up to six different models at the same time. It can build small, medium or large vehicles, but Ford officials haven't discussed any other models for the plant.

"We're putting that flexibility in for a reason, to take advantage of it in the future," said Jim Tetreault, Ford's vice president of North America Manufacturing.

The plant, which first opened in 1955, will be the model for future renovations of other Ford plants, he said.

"Our whole idea is to maximize capacity, because we're going to run them on all three shifts, which we didn't do years ago, and be able to produce multiple vehicles," Tetreault said.

Employees see the plant's versatility as a plus for job security, Stone said.

"That will give us a lot of opportunity to change with the market," he said. "That's the good part for job security. But I don't anticipate any time soon that we'll be building anything but the Escape."

Ford will get $240 million in tax incentives from state and local governments over the next decade for the plant's renovations.

Across town, the Kentucky Truck Plant in eastern Louisville employs about 4,000 people. The facility makes F-series Super Duty pickups as well as the Expedition and Navigator sport utility vehicles.

Once the third shift is added at LAP, Ford's employment will surpass 8,000 in Louisville — where the company has been making vehicles since 1913. Only the Detroit area will have more assembly line workers than Louisville, Tetreault said.

Nationally, Ford has added more than 5,200 hourly jobs this year — nearly half the 12,000 new hires Ford has said will be added by 2015.

"We'll pass the mark well before 2015," Tetreault said.

Ford isn't the only major manufacturer to add jobs in Louisville.

So far this year, General Electric has hired more than 1,000 workers to handle production of a hybrid water heater and bottom freezer refrigerators at its sprawling Appliance Park in Kentucky's largest city.

The company plans to start a second shift in its refrigerator factory later this summer, creating more jobs.

GE also says preparations are under way to open another plant at Appliance Park to make front load washing machines and matching dryers in early 2013. GE said it expects to create hundreds of new jobs from introducing new laundry products within the next year, including investments in its top load washers.

In Kentucky, manufacturing accounts for about one of every 10 jobs, down from about two in 10 jobs in the early 1990s, said University of Kentucky economics professor Ken Troske.

"We're never going to return to that," he said. "Will manufacturing employment kind of stabilize? Maybe. Will it grow? Maybe just a little."

The unemployment rate in Jefferson County, which includes Louisville, was 8.1 percent in April, down from 9.8 percent a year earlier.

Fischer said he's seeing broader signs that employers are making investments and expanding work forces.

"We're not back into the glory days, and we all know now in retrospect those were overheated," he said. "But we're having a slow comeback out of the recession."

Ford shows off its
gallery of gas misers

Automaker shows off its gas misers for
those feeling the pinch at the pumps.

Wheels.ca - June 12, 2012

We're all feeling the pinch at the pumps.

Unlike the Europeans who've long embraced alternative methods of travel with their excellent mass transit, dedicated bike lanes and an enthusiastic scooter culture — most of us, with our vast distances between waypoints, are still firmly attached to our personal vehicles.

Although hybrids and electric vehicles have now become commonplace, there's no one-size-fits-all solution to our fuel and environmental woes, no single vehicle the definitive answer.

Instead, there's a variety of choice.

With that in mind, Ford recently rolled into Toronto on the final stop of their cross-Canada "Power of Choice" tour with a variety of vehicles ranging from the conventionally powered but fuel-efficient EcoBoost utility vehicle, regular and plug-in hybrids, to full-on electric — each designed to fulfill different consumer needs.

Exhibition Place's former Automotive Building is now the LEED-certified (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Allstream Centre and considered Canada's "greenest" conference centre.

It was an appropriate venue for an event beginning with a display of all the eco-friendly materials used in Ford's interiors.

Insulation and carpet backing containing recycled blue jeans, bio-foam seat cushions made from soybeans, and reclaimed plastics that have rerouted an estimated 2 million plastic bottles from landfill sites are all part of Ford's initiative to reduce environmental impact.

By 2013, the company claims that over 90 per cent of their lineup will feature the efficient EcoBoost engines, which boast a 20 per cent reduction in fuel consumption and 15 per cent fewer C02 emissions.

Although the 2013 Fusion Hybrid, which goes on sale this fall, was on display in the lobby, it was not available for testing.

Instead, there was a lineup that included the 2012 Ford Focus Electric, a pair of 2013 Ford Escapes — each with a different EcoBoost engine — and the 2012 Fusion Hybrid.

Over a short drive route that encircled the Toronto Exhibition grounds and incorporated part of the upcoming Honda Indy race course, we had a brief taste of each.

The Focus EV is a jaunty little hatchback with an Aston Martin-esque face.

Other than a trunk that's been compromised by the intrusion of its 23kW lithium ion battery pack, the Focus EV differs little from its gas-powered counterpart, with the same steering and handling feel.

Remarkably unremarkable, it provides a completely conventional driving experience — albeit one that's eerily silent.

Ford's first all electric vehicle, the Focus EV boasts a new home- charging system that will recharge the battery in three hours — half the time of competitor Nissan Leaf. It has no tailpipe, no exhaust, therefore, no emissions whatsoever.

The conscientious energy-conserving driver is rewarded with an info screen full of butterflies — inspired by the "butterfly effect" wherein small things (such as the adage of a butterfly's flapping wings disrupting the weather) can cause big change in eventual outcome.

With a range of up to 160 km, the Focus EV is well-suited to the urban dweller. Not so much the commuter from outlying bedroom communities. Crestfallen, one young participant realized the EV would be entirely unsuitable for her regular visits to the cottage, 400 km away.

Such a driver would be better served by a hybrid, using a parallel gasoline-electric system which constantly regenerates energy spent through braking, storing it in an on-board battery pack, or a plug-in hybrid, which can run solely on battery power — the gasoline engine taking over once the energy is depleted.

Both choices alleviate the all-important range anxiety. Although Ford hasn't released detailed specs on the upcoming plug-in Fusion Energi, they claim it will be more efficient than either the Chevrolet Volt or Toyota Prius. These claims have yet to be proven, since so much depends on driving styles and effects of climate on battery range.

The current Fusion Hybrid won accolades when it was introduced two years ago. It's a handsome sedan that returns a combined fuel economy of approximately 6.0L/100 km combined, displaying a nearly seamless transition from electric to gasoline power.

Again, the dash display rewards the careful driver, this time with leafy greenery that grows more abundant as less energy is expended.

The fleet was rounded off by a pair of 2013 Ford Escapes, both with EcoBoost engines: one, a 1.6L with 173 hp and 177 lb.-ft. of torque that will offer the greatest fuel economy, and a 2.0L EcoBoost with 237 hp and 250 lb.-ft. that, with tow-packaged equipped Escapes, boasts a rating of up to 3,500 lbs.

While the larger engine consumes 10.7L/100 km city and 7.8L highway, the 1.6, with 10.2/7.1 L/100 km, offers the best fuel economy in its segment: clearly a compelling choice for those weekend cottage dwellers with toys to tow.

There's no single answer to our energy dilemma, rather, a thought-provoking series of choices depending on individual circumstances. What's also becoming obvious is the important role that the driver plays, regardless of vehicle type, in conserving fuel.

Whether you choose to drive an EV, hybrid or gasoline combustion engine powered vehicle, fuel-efficient driving tips such as those provided by Natural Resources Canada on its website can make a big difference in your fuel consumption.

Auto makers tell union wage
hikes won't happen

GREG KEENAN
June 11, 2012

The Detroit Three auto makers have fired an early salvo at their unionized Canadian work force, warning that they are determined to hold the line on wages and other fixed costs in contract negotiations that begin next month.

Each of the companies sent a letter to the Canadian Auto Workers asking the union to forego a small wage increase, known as cost of living adjustment (COLA), that went into effect this month. The auto makers want the workers to agree instead to lump-sum payments, and are warning that such automatic wage increases would further damage the competitive positions of their Canadian plants.

The auto makers' declarations offer a glimpse of their key goal in bargaining – holding down their hourly labour costs, one of the key fixed costs they can control. They also want wages to be more closely tied to profitability. That sets the stage for difficult bargaining, because the union is intent on raising wages and recovering some benefits they surrendered during the 2008-2009 auto crisis.

"One of GM's main objectives for 2012 bargaining is to ensure that we maintain our break-even point by not adding fixed costs," David Wenner, general director of labour relations of General Motors of Canada Ltd., told CAW head Ken Lewenza in his letter.

The union rejected the request to trade the COLA increase for lump-sum payments or bonuses, which means workers will get their first wage increase since 2007 – even though it's only 28 cents a hour on wages of about $32.

The companies' proposal frustrated Mr. Lewenza, who noted the union agreed to freeze cost-of-living adjustments – and base wage rates – until the final quarter of the cost-saving contracts it signed during the crisis.

Those agreements helped secure federal and Ontario contributions of about $14-billion to the bailouts of General Motors Corp. and Chrysler LLC.

Ford Motor Co. did not seek a bailout, but many of the cost-saving initiatives in the GM and Chrysler contracts were extended to Ford.

"That was part of the sacrifices and at the very first opportunity, they're looking at mechanisms to pay out differently or in some cases, which isn't in writing, eliminate it totally," Mr. Lewenza said in an interview.

In a sign of how far apart the union and the companies are even before bargaining that covers about 18,000 employees starts next month, they can't agree on the size of the gap in all-in hourly labour costs between Canadian and U.S. plants.

Ford's Canadian plants were operating at a $15 an hour disadvantage to U.S. plants, Michael Hyland, Ford Motor Co. of Canada Ltd. labour affairs manager said in his letter to the CAW.

Restoring the COLA payment will help increase that gap to $30 an hour by the end of 2012, Mr. Hyland said.

"It is the company's opinion that together we must do all that we can to reduce this disparity and restore some of Canada's cost competitiveness, not erode it further," he wrote.

But the $30-an-hour figure is "absolutely ridiculous," Mr. Lewenza said.

The figures for all-in labour costs are closely guarded secrets at the companies, but the Center for Automotive Research in Ann Arbor, Mich., pegs Chrysler factory costs at $52 (U.S.) an hour in the United States, those of GM at $56 and Ford's at $58.

Costs at Chrysler factories in Canada are $10 (Canadian) higher than they are in the United States and a COLA clause in a new four-year contract would add another $4.80 to the gap, said a letter to Mr. Lewenza from Todd Bested, Chrysler Canada Inc.'s director of labour relations.

Sergio Marchionne, chief executive officer of Chrysler, has been the most vocal among executives about Canadian costs, but each of the companies wants the CAW to shift compensation to pay based on company profit, rather than annual percentage increases.

The CAW has rejected pay based on profit.

RETIREE BOB ALLISON
PASSES AWAY

Retired Dec 1, 1996
28 Years Service

It is with great sadness that we inform you of the sudden
passing of Retiree Bob Allison on June 9, 2012.

Our Deepest Condolences go out to his family.

Funeral and visitation will be at St Andrew's Funeral Home,
8190 Dixie Road, Brampton

Visitation: Tuesday June 12 - 2 PM to 4PM and 7 PM to 9 PM

Funeral: Wednesday June 13 - 11AM

Directions

Allison Robert (Bob) It is with much sadness that we announce the sudden passing of Bob Allison on June 9. With his late wife Dorothy (2005) he was the proud father of daughters Lynn and Laurie and twin sons Russell and the late Rob (2008). He is survived by his sister Ruth Trainor and his friend Shirley Lukala. Bob will be sorely missed by his eight grandchildren Allison, Joshua and James Alderton, Samantha and Callan McCorriston, Tyler Allison and Jacob and Connor Allison. Also by his sons-in-law Jeremy Alderton & Doug McCorriston, his daughter-in-law Jill Brennan- Allison and his many nieces and nephews.

Listening to Bob talk about the people he had met throughout his life made it seem like he knew everybody. From his years as a manager at various Dominion stores, his work at Ford Motor Company in Bramalea, his home away from home at Sand Lake, and from the years spent coaching girls' and women's softball, Bob could recall everyone he had ever met and tell stories that always brought a laugh.

Bob was a story teller. His laugh and humor filled any room he was in. Bob was hard not to notice; he was a big man with a big personality and will leave a big hole in all of our lives. We will miss his quick wit, the twinkle that was always in his eye and his larger than life presence. He was Bob.

Visitation to be held at the Andrews Community Funeral Centre (8190 Dixie Rd., Brampton N. of Steeles Ave. 905-456-8190) on Tuesday from 2-4 & 7-9 pm. A Celebration of Bob's Life will take place Wednesday June 13th, 2012 at 11:00 a.m. in the Chapel. Interment to follow at Brampton Memorial Gardens. If desired donations to the Canadian Cancer Society would be appreciated by the family.

Bob Allison sitting with Orville Shaw, Doug Berry and
Peter Zebedee following our May 2012 Retirees Meeting

Student of Ford history puts
classics up for sale in N.H.

By Kathy Mccormack
Associated Press
June 9, 2012

Concord, N.H. — Michael Dingman has spent much of his life collecting vintage Fords and classic neon signs, restoring and keeping them well-preserved for years. Now, the former Ford Motor Co. director is ready to share his slice of Americana with others.

Nearly 50 cars, many of them from Ford's flathead era, and well over 1,000 signs are up for auction this weekend at his property in Hampton, N.H.

Dingman, a businessman and investor who was a Ford director for more than 21 years and also raced cars, sees himself as a student of Ford history. He said in a recent interview with the auction house that he enjoyed the car hunt and grabbed the best convertibles, woodies and others he could find through the years.

"In the Ford world, the V-8 flathead Ford is like up on a pedestal," said Michael Fairbairn, co-founder of RM Auctions Inc. "It may not be the fastest, it may not be the prettiest," but it draws car collectors. "It's what's in their blood. It's what they think of when they think of a great Ford."

Dingman bought and restored them.

"He really loves these cars, wants to make them the best he can and views it almost as a calling in life to leave behind almost as many great ones as he can," Fairbairn said.

One of his most prized cars, estimated at $225,000 to $275,000, is a rare restored 1936 Ford custom Cabriolet by Glaser, the coachbuilder of choice for "deluxe" Fords in Europe. The black car with chrome trim and directional signals on the windshield pillars won its class at the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance in 2011.

Another is a 1947 Ford Super Deluxe Sportsman convertible estimated at $240,000 to $280,000, representing the epitome of Ford's open woodies.

Other items in the auction include a pair of Porches, an Aston Martin Vantage Volante and a Prevost XL40 Conversion Motor Home with kitchen trailer, which was converted for Dingman to use during his racing career.

While there are many automotive signs and posters in Dingman's collection, there are also ones for soft drinks, beer and other products. In addition to the neon ones, they are made of tin, porcelain, wood and glass. The collection also includes a series of Route 66 signs.

"When I was growing up, you saw neon signs everywhere," said Dingman, 80. Now, most have disappeared. "I wanted to capture that period."

Ford plans first bond sale since rising to investment grade

June 8, 2012

By Zeke Faux Bloomberg News

Ford Motor Co. sold $1.5 billion of bonds in its first benchmark issue since the second-largest U.S. automaker regained investment-grade ratings from Moody's Investors Service last month.

Ford Motor Credit Co., the carmaker's financing unit, sold the 3-percent, five-year notes at a spread of 230 basis points more than similar-maturity Treasuries, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The spread was reduced from initial talk of about 240 basis points, according to a person familiar with the offering who asked not to be identified because details are private.

Moody's raised its rating on Ford by two levels to Baa3, the lowest level of investment grade, from Ba2, on May 22. The move, which followed Fitch Ratings's upgrade of Ford from junk status on April 24, enabled the company to regain control of its logo and other assets pledged as collateral to obtain a $23.4 billion loan to keep the business going in 2006.

"Management has stuck to its goals and shown that they've been able to not only reduce debt but improve the business overall," Jody Lurie, a corporate credit analyst at Janney Montgomery Scott LLC in Philadelphia, said in a telephone interview. "Many didn't expect the company to get into investment-grade range so quickly."

The spread on the new bonds was more than 120 basis points less than the premium on Ford's last sale of five-year notes in January, Bloomberg data show. At that time, the company sold $1 billion of 4.25 percent debt that yielded 354.1 basis points, or 3.54 percentage points, more than Treasuries.

Those securities have climbed to 105.9 cents on the dollar at 4:04 p.m. today to yield 2.89 percent, with the spread tightening to 218 basis points, according to Trace, the bond- price reporting system of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority.

The Dearborn, Michigan-based automaker's second upgrade meant that its debt shifted out of Barclays Plc's and Bank of America Corp.'s junk-bond indexes to their high-grade gauges. Many bond-fund managers adjust their holdings to match the indexes.

Ford Motor Credit converted $2.5 billion of asset-backed securities into unsecured debt yesterday. The bonds, linked to vehicle loans, were issued in 2011 and designed to automatically convert when two of the three major rating companies lifted the automaker's credit ranking to investment grade.

Ford slid to junk in 2005. High-yield, high-risk, or junk bonds, are graded below Baa3 by Moody's and lower than BBB- at Standard & Poor's and Fitch. Benchmark sales typically are at least $500 million.

Ford: Global plans key
in pension moves

Automaker decided to invest in new cars, dividends, expansion

June 7 2012
Keith Naughton
Bloomberg News

Ford Motor Co., which has a $15.4 billion unfunded pension liability, rejected offloading its retiree obligations as General Motors Co. is doing in favor of investing on global expansion, new models and paying dividends.

The second-largest U.S. automaker considered shifting its salaried pension plan to an outside company as GM is doing by purchasing an annuity with a Prudential Financial Inc. unit, Bob Shanks, Ford's chief financial officer, said Monday.

GM said it will spend $3.5 billion to $4.5 billion to purchase the group annuity and offer pension buyouts to 42,000 salaried retirees.

"That's a huge outlay," Shanks said. "When we look at our spending plans, look at our plans for dividends, look at our plans for pension contributions, when we think about our growth plans, product plans. As we do all that, we don't think we have excess cash."

Ford is offering lump-sum pension payments to about 98,000 U.S. salaried retirees and former employees.

Shanks can't say how much that may lower Ford's global $74 billion pension liability because it's unclear how many retirees will take the buyout.

GM said it aims to cut its pension obligation by $26 billion through offering buyouts and creating the annuity.

"We've looked at all sorts of options," Shanks said. "It's not like it's rocket science, there's only so many things you can do to de-risk a pension plan. We are comfortable with what we've done thus far."

Ford is contributing $3.5 billion to its global pension plans this year and will begin making buyout offers to salaried retirees in August, Shanks said.

GM's move to also offer lump-sum payments to retirees isn't likely to have any impact on the take-rate at Ford, Shanks said.

"If it were me, it would be very personal," Shanks said. "I'd have my own point of view about how I felt from a financial perspective. I'd have my point of view about how I felt about the health of the company because, obviously, by not taking a lump sum you're assuming and depending on Ford continuing as an ongoing operation for the balance of your lifetime."

Allan McLean RENNIE

Al Rennie was a supervisor at the Bramalea National Parts Depot for many years.

US Auto workers urged to oppose Japan's entry into trade talks

By David Shepardson
Detroit News Washington Bureau
June 5, 2012

Washington -The United Auto Workers union and Ford Motor Co. urged the automaker's more than 40,000 hourly workers to oppose Japan's entry into free-trade talks.

"Japan's auto industry has not done the hard work we had to do to remain globally competitive. Bailing out the Japanese auto industry with a one-sided trade agreement will jeopardize the American auto recovery," said the letter distributed at all of Ford's U.S. plants signed by UAW vice president Jimmy Settles and Ford vice president for North American manufacturing Jim Tetreualt. "We need a level playing field where we compete on even terms. By further opening our market in the U.S. without insisting first on reforms in Japan, we are locking in one-way, unfair trade."

The Trans-Pacific Partnership talks currently include Australia, Chile, Peru, Singapore, Brunei, Malaysia, New Zealand and Vietnam. Canada, Mexico and Japan may be invited to join the talks as early as this month.

Last week, Ford president and CEO Alan Mulally was in Washington to hold meetings with Congress and the Obama administration, opposing Japan's entry into the trade talks.

The letter asks UAW members to "contact the White House, your senators and congressman now and ask these elected leaders not to jeopardize the American auto recovery and your job by bailing out the Japanese auto industry."

A free trade agreement could drop tariffs on Japanese vehicles entering the United States and make it more economically viable to build vehicles in Japan and export them to the U.S. The Japanese currently pay a 2.5 percent tariff on cars and a 25 percent tariff on trucks exported from Japan to the U.S.

Japanese automakers have complained about the value of Japanese yen — which tends to increase the cost of its exports to the U.S. — and have been talking about moving production outside of the country unless the yen weakens. U.S. automakers argue such a move could amount to currency manipulation and an unfair trade practice.

Japanese automakers note the auto imports in Japan have been rising and question whether U.S. automakers are offering the right types of vehicles to meet Japanese consumer preferences.

Japan is the world's third-largest automotive market. It ranks last out of the 30 member countries in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development in access for imported automobiles.

U.S. automakers say Japan has intentionally kept foreign cars out. They note that Hyundai Motor Co. recently completely withdrew from the Japanese market.

GM offers lump-sum
buyout of pensions

42,000 salaried workers eligible; will reduce liabilities by $26B

By David Shepardson and Melissa Burden
The Detroit News
June 4, 2012

General Motors Co. said Friday it will offer lump-sum pension buyouts to about 42,000 salaried retirees and offload its salaried retiree pensions to Prudential Insurance Co. of America — moves that will reduce its pension liability by $26 billion.

The announcement follows a similar offer from Ford Motor Co., which said Thursday it will offer pension buyouts to 98,000 qualifying white-collar retirees and former workers.

GM salaried retirees who are offered the lump-sum choice have until July 20 to make a decision. Payouts will come in September for those who take it. The lump sum payment will be based on factors including age, years of employment and current pension amount.

The Detroit-based automaker said it will spend $3.5 billion to $4.5 billion cash in the deal. That includes $1 billion cash used to fully fund the plan before transferring assets to Prudential, and another $3 billion to $3.5 billion to buy the annuity or contract from Prudential.

"We've made a big step forward," GM Chief Financial Officer Dan Ammann said, adding it helps "toward our objective of de-risking our pension plans and will further strengthen our balance sheet and give us more financial flexibility going forward."

This is the latest effort by GM to reduce what's become the world's largest pension obligations. The move will reduce GM's worldwide pension liabilities from $134 billion to $106 billion — and cut its salaried pension obligation from $36 billion to $10 billion.

GM will retain U.S. hourly pension plans with $71 billion in liabilities and $61 billion in assets. "Clearly, pension has continued to be a significant issue for General Motors," Ammann said. Ammann would not directly answer whether GM plans to make a similar offer to its U.S. hourly retirees. He declined to talk about discussions with the UAW about hourly pensions. "We're going to continue to look for opportunities down the road," he said.

UAW officials could not be reached for comment Friday.

GM will transfer $29 billion in assets from its salaried pension plans to Prudential in the move and said it "sets precedent for additional actions."

The company expects to take special charges of between $2.5 billion to $3.5 billion in the second half of this year; the ongoing annual impact to its earnings will be a decrease of about $200 million, as a result of a drop in pension income.

Company officials also said the action is an important step toward regaining investment grade credit ratings.

Fitch Ratings said Friday that it views the moves as "incrementally positive to GM's credit profile," but it didn't change its ratings on the automaker. Fitch called the pension moves a "positive step in reducing the risk of future volatility in the company's cash pension obligations."

Moody's Investors Service also left GM's credit rating unchanged, saying the actions cancel each other out.

Bruce Clark, senior vice president at Moody's, said the deal comes at a cost for GM.

"… When all is said and done, the company's total underfunded pension liability will be reduced by only $1 billion," he said in a statement.

Other analysts say the move will help GM in the long haul.

"We view this announcement favorably as it reduces GM's risk and improves their flexibility," wrote Joseph Spak, an analyst with RBC Capital Markets LLC, in an investor note. "Moreover, we believe this sets a template to deal with the larger U.S. hourly worker pension obligation."

GM is offering buyouts to about 42,000 of its 118,000 salaried retirees and beneficiaries. Those eligible retired from GM on or after Oct. 1, 1997, and before Dec. 1, 2011. The automaker doesn't plan to offer lump sum buyouts to U.S. salaried workers who retired before 1997.

GM will buy a group annuity contract from Prudential Retirement, and Prudential will pay and administer future benefit payments to most of the remaining U.S. salaried retirees.

As a result, GM won't be responsible for any current salaried pension retirees after the deal closes by year's end.

The Detroit-based company also will establish a new pension plan for active salaried employees and terminate its current salaried pension plan.

GM's pensions grew worldwide from $22.2 billion underfunded to $25.4 billion. U.S. pension underfunding increased from $11.5 billion to $13.3 billion. The company has the world's largest pension plans with nearly $110 billion in assets.

In February, GM said as part of its strategy to "de-risk" its pension plans, it anticipated a more conservative growth in its investments.

GM earned 8 percent on pension investments in 2011 and expects to earn 6.5 percent for its hourly pension plan and 5.7 percent for the salary pension plan.

GM said earlier it is freezing its salaried pension plan, which will mean salaried workers will stop accruing additional pension benefits after Sept. 30. Active plan participants will receive additional contributions to its 401(k)-style plan and an extra week of vacation.

That change affects 19,000 salaried employees hired before 2001 who still receive traditional pensions, which provide retirees with a fixed amount of money each month for the rest of their lives.

As part of its new contract with the UAW reached last year, it barred new hourly workers from receiving defined benefit pensions.

But the UAW said GM sought cuts in hourly pensions for older workers. The UAW rejected it.

GM froze its cash balance pension plan for entry-level employees on Jan. 2, and expects to terminate it in June. Participants in the plan and all employees hired after October 2007 will participate in a defined contribution plan, GM said.

Pension buyouts
Looking to reduce its pension obligations, General Motors Co. is offering some U.S. salaried retirees a voluntary pension buyout. Here are some details of the company's proposal:
The offer: One-time single lump sum payment; workers can opt to continue to receive their monthly payments, which in the future would be paid by the Prudential Insurance Co. of America.
Who's eligible: U.S. salaried workers who retired on or after Oct. 1, 1997 and before Dec. 1, 2011.
Number eligible: About 42,000
Deadline to participate: Responses due by July 20, 2012.
Payments: Made in September 2012

Ford claims top auto
sales spot in May

CBC News
Jun 2, 2012

Ford Motor Company of Canada Friday claimed top-selling position in May, saying car and light truck sales rose 31 per cent from a year earlier, to 32,338.

Sales of Ford's full-sized pickups rose 46 per cent.

Sales for the first five months of the year reached 111,538, 4.3 per cent above the same period a year earlier.

Chrysler Canada enjoyed its 30th consecutive month of year-over-year sales growth in May as sales rose seven per cent to 26,218 vehicles, the company said Friday.

"There have only been three months in the last 10 years that have hit the 26,000 sales mark and I'm thrilled to count May 2012 among them" said chief operating officer Dave Buckingham.

The increase in vehicle sales in May, up from 24,406 in May 2011, gave Chrysler its best retails sales numbers in the calendar year to date since 2002, the company said in a release.

Japanese automakers seemed to rebound thoroughly from supply challenges faced since the country's massive earthquake and tsunami in March 2011.

Toyota Canada Inc. said it has regained momentum from "post-tsunami" challenges and saw sales jump to 19,810, a 64.7 per cent increase over May 2011. Sales of its Prius family of hybrids were especially strong, seeing a whopping 804 per cent increase over last May.

Nissan Canada Inc. said it sold 9,204 units, an increase of 36.9 per cent over May 2011.

Hyundai Auto Canada Corp. Said May sales rose two per cent to 14,249, its 41st consecutive month of year-over-year sales growth. For the first five months of the year, Hyundai's sales have risen by 4.7 per cent.

Kia Canada's sales rose 22.1 per cent, to 8,460.

Toyota leads U.S. sales jump
Toyota, as expected, led sales increases with an 87 per cent rise from a year earlier, when the earthquake disrupted its supply of new vehicles.

In the U.S., Chrysler said it sales jumped 30 per cent last month, as pent-up demand led Americans replaced their aging cars despite the falling stock market and shaky consumer confidence.

"You have so many old vehicles on the road," said Tom Libby, lead analyst for the Polk automotive research firm. He sees auto sales continuing to grow through the next two or three years.

Chrysler was followed by Volkswagen at 28 per cent and Nissan at 21 per cent. Ford sales rose 13 per cent and GM was up 11 per cent.

Total U.S. sales for May should rise 30 per cent to 1.4 million cars and trucks, according to forecasts from industry analysts.

They expect sales for 2012 to reach 14.5 million, up from 12.8 million last year.

GM to close one of Oshawa plants

GREG KEENAN
Globe & Mail

June 1, 2012

The Canadian Auto Workers union squeezed five more years of production than originally scheduled out of a car assembly plant in Oshawa, Ont., but received the official news Friday that the factory will close next year, eliminating as many as 1,500 jobs.

General Motors Co. told the union the plant will cease production next June, five years later than the original closing date of 2008. That 2008 date was the time frame set out in 2005 when GM first announced the closing in one of a series of plant shutdowns and job cuts it made before the biggest restructuring of all when it went into chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2009.

"This is absolutely sickening," said Chris Buckley, president of CAW local 222, which represents workers at the two GM car plants in Oshawa.

The plant produces the Chevrolet Impala mid-sized sedan and the Chevrolet Equinox crossover.

Impala production will shift to the neighbouring flex plant that also produces Chevrolet Camaro, Buick Regal and Cadillac XTS cars, which means some workers whose jobs will disappear in the plant that's closing could be hired on next door if that plant it adds a third shift. About 2,000 people work in what is known as the consolidated line and will have first crack at the third shift jobs, but GM would not confirm Friday that it will add a third shift at the remaining plant, Mr. Buckley said.

If a third shift is added, employment in what is known as the flexible plant would rise to about 2,500 from 2,000 now, he said.

But that means direct layoffs of at least 1,500 people, plus thousands more at suppliers.

The Chevrolet Equinox crossovers that were being shipped to Oshawa from Ingersoll, Ont., for final assembly will instead be built at the company's former Saturn plant in Spring Hill, Tenn., which GM is reopening after closing it when it killed off Saturn during the chapter 11 restructuring.

The Spring Hill plant is reopening because the United Auto Workers agreed to allow the company to hire a large number of workers at wages of about $14 (U.S.) an hour and minimal benefits. That compares with about $32 (Canadian) in hourly wages in Oshawa.

The CAW calls such wage-cutting a race to the bottom and has stood fast against wage reductions.

If the Canadian union agreed to such cuts, it would soon be asked to match the $6 an hour Mexican workers are being paid, Mr. Buckley argued Friday.

He added that workers in Oshawa and other GM and Detroit Three auto maker operations in Canada made sacrifices in 2009 when GM Canada's parent company went into chapter 11 protection, but the Canadian unit stayed out of protection under the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act.

The redesigned version of the Impala will also be assembled at a plant in the Detroit suburb of Hamtramck, Mich., beginning next year.

CAW president Ken Lewenza said there's a faint hope of keeping the plant open if the current recovery in the market continues and GM finds it needs to boost capacity, as Ford Motor Co. has discovered in recent months.

The closing is the final piece of GM's pre-bankruptcy restructuring, which included shutdowns of two other large Canadian plants that eliminated about 5,000 jobs—a full-sized pickup truck plant in Oshawa that closed in 2009 and a transmission making factory in Windsor, Ont., that closed in 2010.

Ford: US Pension buyout offers
to 98K may start in August

By Jaclyn Trop
The Detroit News
June 1, 2012

Ford Motor Co. said Thursday it will make offers as early as August to buy out the pensions of 98,000 U.S.-based salaried retirees and former white-collar workers.

The Dearborn automaker, in offering more details of a plan announced in April, is making the pension pitch as part of an unprecedented strategy to shed up to one-third of its $49 billion U.S. pension liability.

Ford hopes the lump-sum payout plan will help close the funding gap for its pension obligation and shore up its balance sheet, a move that could also boost its cash flow, credit rating and stock price. Ford's $74 billion global pension liability was underfunded by $15.4 billion at the end of 2011.

It's unclear how many workers will accept the offer, said Ford spokesman Jay Cooney.

"The level of participation is difficult to predict, given the voluntary and unprecedented nature of the program," Cooney said. "It is a highly personal decision and will depend largely on an individual's unique set of circumstances."

"It's absolutely and completely voluntary," he added.

The first wave of offers will reach 12,000 to 15,000 randomly selected workers by the end of the summer. Ford will roll out the rest of the offers over 12 months, Cooney said.

Hourly workers comprise the remaining two-thirds of Ford's U.S. pension obligation.

Retirees will have 90 days to decide to accept the one-time offer of a lump-sum payment based on interest rates, life expectancy and actuarial tables the federal government uses to calculate pension obligations.

Ford can calculate the payout amounts using a corporate bond rate instead of the 30-year Treasury rates, thanks to a change in U.S. pension law this year.

The decision by Ford executives to offer the payouts was not controversial, said Rick Popp, Ford's director of employee benefits.

"Was there debate?" Popp said. "It was more about: 'Can we do this? Is it possible?'"

"It could take millions or billions of dollars of obligations off our books," he added.

General Motors Co., also facing a pension burden, is reportedly considering pension payouts. "We're looking at opportunities for our de-risking strategy," said GM spokesman Dave Roman.

Retirees had mixed reactions when Ford first announced a broad brush of the plan in April.

"I think clients are excited to see the offer," said Kevin Van Dyke, president at Bloomfield Hills Financial. "I think at first there was a certain amount of skepticism. (People thought) if it's a good move for Ford, then it can't be a good move for me."

The offer likely makes most sense for higher earners, who are more at risk if Ford defaults on its pension obligation, Van Dyke said. Retirees will consider factors including longevity, risk tolerance and succession planning when evaluating the offer.

"It's not a good or a bad deal across the board," he said.

Reducing Ford's pension liability will appeal to investors and help the company achieve its goal of maintaining its investment-grade credit rating, which it regained in May. Moody's Corp. became last week the second ratings house to upgrade Ford's debt from junk bond status for the first time since 2005, one month after Fitch Ratings did the same.

"We don't see the program as a risk," Cooney said of the pension buyout plan. "From our standpoint, it's proactive."

*************************************

Ford salaried pensioners face choice: lump-sum payout or monthly checks

Darla Mercado

Investment News

About 90,000 white-collar retirees of Ford Motor Co. and the financial advisers who help them are facing a major decision: Continue to receive a monthly check from the defined-benefit pension plan, or leave the plan by taking a lump sum that the automaker will offer over the next 30 to 60 days.

In what has been cited as the largest voluntary buyout in history, Ford said last month that it wanted to lighten its $49 billion U.S. pension obligation by offering nonunionized former salaried employees a one-time payment.

The size of that payment depends on the number of retirees who choose it, but Ford thinks that its offer could reduce its U.S.-based pension obligation by about a third (or roughly $16 billion), Ford CFO Bob Shanks said during an earnings conference call last month.
How big a payout?

Shanks didn't disclose information on the assumptions to be used to calculate payment size.

The key factor in determining how much Ford will offer is the interest rate that it will use to calculate the current value of retirees' pensions. The Pension Protection Act of 2006 requires that 30-year corporate bond yields be used to calculate minimum lump-sum payments from defined-benefit plans.

Using that yield, now at about 3.25 percent, would save Ford a considerable sum over using the rate for comparable Treasury securities, now about 2.8 percent. Pension plans were required to use the Treasury rate until this year.

In the meantime, many financial advisers, especially those in Michigan, are preparing clients for what could be their most important choice in retirement.

Considerations going into the lump-sum or payment-stream decision include individual and spousal life-expectancy assumptions, tax-planning issues, legacy plans and the fairly negative investment outlook most advisers see over the next five to 10 years.

'Transfer of risk'

"The first conversation I'm having with these clients is making sure that they understand the transfer of risk," said Wayne B. Titus III, founder of AMDG Financial Advisory Services in suburban Detroit, which manages $40 million in assets.

"Ford bears the investment and longevity risk if the retirees leave the money there, but if my clients take the lump sum, they are transferring risk to themselves," he said.

"Health also is a huge consideration," said Lynn M. Vance, senior partner at Global Financial Planning Group, a suburban Detroit firm with $150 million in assets under management.

"People don't understand that with a pension, they only own the income stream. If you take the lump sum and die in six months, then you've won," she said.

Generally, advisers suggest opting for annuitized income if the client is in good physical shape and has a family history of longevity. The lump sum might make more sense for individuals who haven't been in the best health.

'Stay conservative'

Leon C. LaBrecque, CEO of LJPR, also in suburban Detroit, cited the case of one of his Ford retiree clients: a woman in her 60s, in remission from cancer, whose husband is in good health. His firm manages $420 million in assets.

"I'm probably going to suggest that she take the lump sum, and we'll invest heavily into fixed income," he said. "The payment she's receiving from Ford now is like a super bond, and we want to stay conservative."

Another situation favouring a lump sum is one in which the spouse of a deceased retiree receives survivorship benefits. That payment stream ends once the surviving spouse dies, leaving nothing for any heirs. But if the survivor opts for the lump sum and invests it wisely, whatever remains after generating retirement income becomes part of the survivor's estate.

Tax consequences

Making the choice of a lump sum or an annuity payment stream also carries tax consequences. For those under age 59 1/2, taking the lump sum and rolling it over into an individual retirement account means they cannot touch the money without paying a 10 percent penalty.

Vance has a personal interest in the dilemma. Her 57-year-old husband, a Ford retiree, is among those being offered the buyout. The two are inclined to continue the payment stream, as they are using the income.

Ford retirees who opt for the lump sum and roll it into an IRA should be aware of the tax implications that could occur if they make a large one-time conversion to a Roth IRA.

"Advisers need to determine how much money they can convert from a regular IRA to a Roth without boosting the client into a higher tax bracket," Titus said.

He added that if a retiree is between 62 and 66, and yet to begin taking Social Security benefits, his or her income may be low enough to begin converting an IRA to a Roth with less of a tax bite.

The conversion only makes sense, however, if the client has enough money to live on and expects to pass the Roth account onto heirs, as the Roth account should be invested for growth, Titus said.

Negative outlook

Advisers opting to have their clients remain in the pension plan cite the safety of a guaranteed income stream in the face of a negative investment outlook.

They argue that it is unknown whether the lump sum can generate sufficient principal to provide the 4 to 4.5 percent withdrawal rate that advisers estimate is necessary to maintain sufficient assets during retirement.

"You can't beat that rate with a Treasury ladder or with a single-premium immediate annuity," said LaBrecque, who is suggesting to his clients that they keep their pensions.

But choosing a payment stream has risks, too, advisers said. For instance, if Ford were to become financially unable to pay off its pension obligations, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. could step in and continue paying the pension -- but probably at a much-reduced rate.

"At the executive level, [the risk of insolvency] is more relevant," said Jason Close, an adviser at Capelli Financial Services Inc. of suburban Detroit. About a dozen of his clients will be choosing between a lump sum and an annuity payment.

KIMBALL
CLARKE CLOUT

(September 23, 1969 - May 29, 2012)

It is with great sadness that we inform you of the passing
of Kim Clout past CAW Local 584 Plant Chairman on May 29, 2012.

Our heartfelt condolences go out to his wife Clare and Family.

Passed away peacefully with his family by his side at the age of 42 after a long battle with cancer. Beloved husband of Clare. Loving father of Austin, Victoria, and Jennifer. Loving brother to Chris (Darlene), Don, and Christine (Craig). Lovingly remembered by many nieces and nephews. Beloved son-in-law of Dave and Donna Symonds. Predeceased by his father Kimball Clarke Sr. Forever loved and missed by all family and friends. Friends may call at the Brampton Memorial Chapel & Visitation Centre, 10061 Chinguacousy Rd (at Bovaird) 905-460-9155 on Friday, June 1, 2012 from 2-4 & 6-8p.m. Funeral Service to take place on Saturday, June 2, 2012 at 10a.m in the Chapel. Private family interment. If desired, donations to Prostate Cancer Canada would be appreciated by the family. Online condolences may be made here.

Funeral Arrangements

LOCATION:
Brampton Memorial Chapel & Visitation Centre
                     10061 Chingcousy Rd.
                     Brampton, On.
                     L7A 0H6
                     Tel: 905-460-9155
                      Fax: 905-460-8922

Get Map Here
  
Public Visitation:
Friday, June 1, 2012
2-4 & 6-8 pm
 
CELEBRATION OF LIFE

 DATE:   Saturday, June 2, 2012
 
Location:    Brampton Memorial Chapel

TIME: 10 am
 
Reception: 11am
 
PRIVATE CREMATION
 
INTERMENT: Brampton Cemetery, Monday June 4, 2012  at 11 am

Ford can't keep up
with auto demand

Mulally says automaker will add shifts, but not plants, to increase production

May 31, 2012

Washington— Ford Motor Co. President and Chief Executive Alan Mulally says his company can't build enough vehicles to meet demand.

Mulally said Wednesday Ford will continue boosting production this year, acknowledging that crimps in the parts supply chain are among the challenges that will prevent it from making as many cars and trucks as it wants — at least in the short run.

"We're going to increase production through the rest of the year," Mulally told reporters after making the rounds among Michigan's congressional delegation and other key Washington officials on several issues.

"We have limits on our production as we're going up, because as we restructure the entire business, we're bringing along the entire supply chain, so we really can't make as many vehicles as people want right now."

Ford and other automakers are adding shifts, tweaking work schedules and boosting production to meet North American demand.

"Within the next two quarters," Mulally said, "we'll be adding all the third shifts and the extra production so by the end of the year, we'll be able to produce the amount of vehicles that people want.

"But we'll take a hit in the near term — just because we're limited in production."

Some of its hottest vehicles, including the Focus, Fusion and Explorer, are in relatively short supply.

Ford's first quarter U.S. market share was 15.2 percent — down from 16 percent in the same period in 2011. The Dearborn-based company had projected it would own about 16.5 percent of the U.S. market this year, but it withdrew that forecast in April. It gained market share for three straight years.

Rebecca Lindland, an auto analyst at IHS Automotive, said Ford's market share is down for a number of reasons — and said production is a "contributing factor."

"The industry is so pared down; there was such a dramatic drop-off and (suppliers) are terrified of retooling for 15 (million) or 16 million (sales a year)," Lindland said.

U.S. sales last year totaled 12.8 million, and recent estimates put this year's sales at 14.4 million cars and trucks. Many analysts expect May sales, to be announced Friday, will have risen nearly 30 percent over May 2011.

Lindland said Ford faces pressure from competitive General Motors and Chrysler products, as well as Japanese automakers recovering from last year's natural disasters that hamstrung their production. "The amount of competition Ford is facing, like everybody, is incredible," she said.

Sweeter incentives may be luring more buyers to Ford vehicles, leading to further dwindling inventories and increased pressure on its factories. Ford said Wednesday it raised incentives this month after reducing them by about $300 a vehicle in April, Bloomberg News reported.

"We pulled back perhaps a little too much in the month of April, which is why we had a bit of a dip," Erich Merkle, Ford's sales analyst, said Wednesday in Dearborn. Ford boosted its incentives to be in line with the industry, which remains "very disciplined" in its use of discounts, Merkle said.

Suppliers hesitant
Automakers closed dozens of plants over the past decade and are running those that survived at close to 100 percent capacity. But some suppliers are hesitant to dramatically boost capacity, keenly recalling the sharp decline in auto sales in 2009 that forced many of them out of business, and two of Detroit's three automakers into bankruptcy.

Ford has been bulking up production by adding shifts — a third shift this month at Michigan Assembly in Wayne, where it builds the Focus, plus a third shift at its Chicago Assembly, where it builds the Ford Taurus and Taurus SHO, Lincoln MKS, Police Interceptor and Explorer.

Ford's Kansas City Assembly plant got a second shift to build the F-150 truck, which is the best-selling vehicle in the country.

By September, the automaker will add a third shift at Louisville Assembly where it builds the new Escape — a key vehicle in its lineup.

Summer schedule tweaked
Ford also is paring back its customary two-week summer shutdown. It will shutter for just a week at 13 plants, and the additional plant time will enable it to produce nearly 40,000 more vehicles.

Five of those plants are in Michigan, and another is in Windsor.

The altered summer shutdown schedule is part of Ford's plan to increase annual production capacity by 400,000 vehicles by the end of September, to 3 million.

Mulally said Ford has room to grow in North America, but has no plans to bring additional plants online.

Ford isn't the only automaker to tweak its summer schedule to boost production.

Auburn Hills-based Chrysler has canceled the traditional summer shutdown at three more of its factories to keep up with demand.

The Toledo Supplier Park in Ohio, the Belvidere Assembly Plant in Illinois and Chrysler's plant in Toluca, Mexico, will join Detroit's Jefferson North plant in working through the summer.

In addition, Chrysler's factories in Sterling Heights and Saltillo, Mexico, will close for just one week this year. Detroit-based GM has announced no recent production changes.

"We build to meet market demand," said GM spokesman Greg Martin.

Census shows spike in seniors, increasing East-West labour gap

Bill Curry - Globe & Mail
May 30, 2012

Canada's latest census numbers underscore the growing obsession of federal and provincial governments with demographics, as the retiring baby boom generation is starting to have major policy implications for labour markets, taxation and the quality of key social programs like health care.

Nationwide, the number of seniors aged 65 and over increased 14.1 per cent between 2006 and 2011, a rate that was more than double the 5.9 per cent increase for the Canadian population as a whole.

Growing Western provinces need more workers to fill labour shortages for both skilled and unskilled labour, but if those jobs are filled by Easterners, Quebec and the Atlantic provinces will be left with dwindling revenues to cover the higher costs of an aging population.

This will add to the inter-provincial tension over issues like equalization, given that Canadians are supposed to receive comparable levels of social services regardless of where they live in the country.

The 2011 census numbers on age and sex, released Tuesday, reveal two very different Canadian realities: an increasingly older population in the East with fewer taxpayers to support provincial social programs, while booming Western provinces enjoy a much younger tax base.

The numbers confirm the share of the working-age population has increased in Ontario and the Western provinces and decreased in the Atlantic provinces and Quebec, where the population is aging faster.

The demographic changes – which will not come as a surprise to federal and provincial leaders – are already driving efforts by provinces to curtail the growth of health costs. At the federal level, concern over labour shortages and Ottawa's long-term bottom line are behind plans to raise the eligibility age for Old Age Security from 65 to 67 and to nudge recipients of Employment Insurance back into the workforce more quickly.

But the numbers show there is more to the demographic shift than East and West. The age shift in Canada is also a move from rural to urban, and some Atlantic Canadian cities are among the highest when it comes to growing percentages of working age residents.

Calgary tops the list in this category, with over 70 per cent of its population aged 15 to 64. Yet Halifax and St. John's round out the top three.

One of the major factors driving government concerns over demographics has been Canada's low fertility rates. Canadians are simply not having enough babies – nor bringing in enough immigrants – to replace all the current taxpayers who will be retiring in the coming years.

Yet Statistics Canada's census-takers did find more toddlers than they have in more than 50 years.

The population of children aged four and under increased 11 per cent between 2006 and 2011. This was the highest growth rate for this age group since the period of 1956 to 1961, during the baby boom.

The largest increases in young children occurred in Alberta, up 20.9 per cent, Saskatchewan, up 19.6 per cent, and Quebec, up 17.5 per cent.

Another fast-growing age group is the over 100 crowd. The 2011 census found 5,825 centenarians, up from 4,635 in 2006. Of those, only 955 were men. Statistics Canada projects there will be 78,300 centenarians by 2061, most of whom will be women.

More women than men reach the age of 100 because women have lower probabilities of dying at all ages than men. In 2008, life expectancy at birth was 78.5 years for men and 83.1 years for women.

Internationally, Canada's rate of centenarians per 100,000 persons (17.4) ranks fifth in the G8, behind Japan (36.8), Italy (26.6), France (25.8) and the United Kingdom (20.3).

The Battle of the Overpass, at 75

Fight between Ford, UAW a turning point in Detroit history

By Bryce G. Hoffman
The Detroit News

May 25, 2012

Saturday, May 26 will mark the 75th anniversary of the Battle of the Overpass, the infamous encounter between leaders of a young United Auto Workers and Ford Motor Co. security men on a footbridge over Miller Road outside the company's River Rouge complex. It would prove a defining moment in the history of Detroit and American labor.

The UAW had won its first major victory in the fight to organize American automakers with its famous Sit-Down Strike against General Motors' operations in Flint that ended in February 1937.

By May of that year, all the big car companies had capitulated, except for one. A defiant Henry Ford still vowed that his company would never recognize the union or its right to bargain on behalf of his employees.

"Labor unions are the worst things that ever struck the earth," he declared.

Ford treated his employees better than his rivals, and many were devoutly loyal to the man and his company. But times were changing, and Ford's Old World paternalism was rejected by a growing number of labor militants.

Ford resented what he saw as ingratitude and ordered his private police force, the notorious Ford Service Department, to do whatever was necessary to keep the UAW out of his factories.

But the union was undeterred. It redoubled its efforts to organize Ford under the leadership of the young, charismatic labor activist Walter Reuther.

Billboards went up near the Rouge declaring "Fordism is Fascism; Unionism is Americanism," and secret meetings were held inside the sprawling factory complex.

On May 26, Reuther and other union leaders decided to make what they characterized as a reconnaissance trip to the factory. If it was, it was a reconnaissance in force. They were accompanied by a large group of clergymen, reporters, photographers and even staffers from the Senate Committee on Civil Liberties. Scores of women from the UAW Local 174 auxiliary were on hand to pass out leaflets to workers as they filed out via the Miller Road Overpass outside Gate 4.

The footbridge had already been the scene of a bloody battle five years before that had left five workers dead and dozens more wounded. Reuther and the other UAW men knew there could be trouble this time, too. And they were not disappointed: Dozens of Ford Service men were waiting in cars outside the plant.

Detroit News photographer James "Scotty" Kilpatrick was one of the news media on hand to record the event. Just before the 2 p.m. shift change, he asked Reuther and three other UAW leaders to mount the staircase to the overpass so that he could snap a picture with the Ford logo behind them.

As the men turned to face Kilpatrick, a group of thugs rushed them from behind. Kilpatrick shouted a warning, but it was too late. The Ford Service men set upon the four union activists and began beating them savagely as the photographer's camera snapped picture after picture.

Reuther later described the beating he received.

"Seven times they raised me off the concrete and slammed me down on it. They pinned my arms … and I was punched and kicked and dragged by my feet to the stairway, thrown down the first flight of steps, picked up, slammed down on the platform and kicked down the second flight. On the ground they beat and kicked me some more," he recalled.

His companion, Robert Kanter, was pushed off the bridge and fell to the ground 30 feet below. The jacket worn by Richard Frankensteen, who headed the UAW's Ford organizing drive, was pulled over his head, and two men held his legs apart while a third kicked him repeatedly in the groin.

Ford's thugs then took the fight to the crowd that had gathered to support the union leaders.

One man's back was broken, and several of the women from Local 174 auxiliary were also beaten, according to eyewitnesses.

The Dearborn police refused to intervene.

"The very most we anticipated was that Harry Bennett, then head of Ford security, might order the fire hoses turned on us," Frankensteen told the Associated Press in a 1975 interview. "But we miscalculated."

So did Ford.

When The Detroit News' photographs went out on the wires, they turned the public against Henry Ford and galvanized support for the UAW.

Washington began pressuring Ford to negotiate with the union.

"That one incident — the sheer stupidity on the part of Bennett and his men — did more to build the UAW in the auto industry than any other incident in the history of organized labor," Frankensteen said.

Four years later, the UAW finally struck the Rouge and forced Ford to recognize the union. And Reuther would go on to become one of the most powerful figures in U.S. labor history.

"The Battle of the Overpass was one of the defining moments of the UAW," says Harley Shaiken, professor of labor studies at the University of California, Berkeley.

"It was comparable to the role of Lexington and Concord in the American Revolution. It was an unexpected moment that underscored a young leader and an emerging union. It was a defeat at the time, but it led to a major victory four years later."

UAW Local 600, which represents workers at the Rouge today, will commemorate the anniversary with a breakfast on Friday and will hang a banner off the overpass paying tribute to those who fought and bled for the union.

"It means a lot. To us, it was the beginning of the unionization of Ford," said local president Bernie Ricke.

"Things were bad at Ford then. We started out with the worst relationship and I believe we have the best relationship now."

In fact, Ricke said the banner will read: "Working from a dark beginning towards a bright future."

New CAW local executive
told to work together

National president Ken Lewenza says
now is not a time for "division"

May 22, 2012
CBC News

Members of CAW Local 444 have been told by national president Ken Lewenza to put differences aside and work together.

Local membership voted for a new executive and the person outgoing president Rick Laporte blamed for causing friction at the union hall has been re-elected.

Local 444, whose members include Chrysler and Caesars Windsor workers, has been troubled by political infighting for about a year.

Most of the problems are between Dino Chiodo, who has been acclaimed new president, and David Cassidy, who was re-elected financial secretary treasurer.

Cassidy accused Chiodo of being behind a series of Youtube videos, which suggest Cassidy was not doing a proper job in representing casino employees.

Chiodo has denied the accusation and was asked if he and Cassidy could work together for the next three years.

"The membership has told us very clearly what they want, and in saying that, now it's a matter of coming together," Chiodo said. "We are going to do what we need to do for our membership moving forward. We'll be working together."

CAW national president Ken Lewenza used to be head of Local 444. He said he's not close to the "politics" of the local.

He did say the local has to work as one.

"They have to. At the end of the day, it's about the membership. It's not about any individual," Lewenza said.

The new executive officially takes office at the end of the month.

Lewenza said there are important issues ahead for the CAW, such as contract talks with Chrysler Canada:

"The reality is the union just doesn't have any space for division," Lewenza said.

Ford Begins Taking Orders for C-MAX Hybrid - America's Most Affordable, Fuel-Efficient Hybrid Utility Vehicle

DEARBORN, Mich., May 21, 2012

•Ford dealers are now taking orders for the Ford C-MAX Hybrid, which will be more affordable than Toyota Prius v while achieving better fuel economy
•Class-exclusive technologies include hands-free liftgate, active park assist for easier parallel parking and next-generation SmartGauge® with EcoGuide to help customers increase their fuel economy
•C-MAX will launch this fall as part of Ford's power of choice strategy to deliver leading fuel economy across its lineup while tripling electrified vehicle production capacity by 2013
Ford dealers are starting to place orders for America's most affordable and fuel-efficient hybrid utility vehicle – the 2013 Ford C-MAX Hybrid – with innovative technologies such as a hands-free liftgate, spaciousness for five passengers and cargo as well as the fun-to-drive character shared with well-handling cars including Ford Focus.

The C-MAX is a compact hybrid utility vehicle and the company's first dedicated line of hybrids. The 2013 C-MAX Hybrid will be available this fall with a base price of $25,995 – approximately $500 lower than the Toyota Prius v's base price.

The C-MAX Energi plug-in hybrid will follow later this year with better electric-mode fuel economy and overall driving range than the Prius plug-in hybrid.

"C-MAX Hybrid offers better fuel economy, performance, technology and functionality than Prius v – and C-MAX Hybrid customers will pay less at the dealership and at the pump," said Ken Czubay, vice president, U.S. Marketing, Sales and Service. "Ford is delivering the power of choice for leading fuel economy across its lineup – from EcoBoost to electrified vehicles – because customers increasingly want to save money at the pump, even as gas prices rise over time."

The C-MAX Hybrid blends fuel economy with performance, with projected best-in-class horsepower and torque along with Ford's third-generation powersplit technology that allows for higher speed while in electric mode than Toyota Prius v.

C-MAX Hybrid benefits from 20 years of research and innovation behind the software and hardware technology driving it, with many of Ford's almost 500 hybrid vehicle-related patents contained within.

That means that along with SYNC® with MyFord Touch®, drivers get class-exclusive features like hands-free liftgate (offering hands-free cargo access with a simple kicking motion), SmartGauge® with EcoGuide, regenerative braking and an advanced lithium-ion (li-ion) battery pack that is being used for the first time in a Ford hybrid.

C-MAX Hybrid – being built on Ford's global C-segment platform – also benefits from a proven design and nameplate with more than 156,000 units of the gasoline version sold in Europe since its 2010 launch.

Room to move
C-MAX Hybrid is a compact hybrid utility vehicle jam-packed with features and room for five people and cargo.

The vehicle has a high roofline (63.9 inches) offering ample interior space and flexibility. C-MAX Hybrid offers 99.7 cubic feet of passenger space compared with 97 cubic feet in Prius v. The spacious C-MAX Hybrid also provides greater headroom in both front and rear seats than Prius v (41/39.4 inches vs. 39.6/38.6 inches).

For cargo, C-MAX Hybrid has 60/40 split-fold rear seats that easily fold flat with 54.3 cubic feet of space behind the first row and 24.5 cubic feet behind the second row.

Tech-savvy
C-MAX Hybrid features the company's innovative hands-free liftgate, allowing for quick and easy access to the cargo area without messing with keys. A gentle kicking motion under the rear bumper opens the liftgate when used in combination with a key fob the user keeps in his or her pocket or purse that tells the car it's OK to engage. The same motion can close the liftgate.

The vehicle also features the newest version of MyFord Touch to help inform, enlighten, engage and empower drivers. MyFord Touch offers multiple ways for customers to manage and control their phone, navigation, entertainment and climate functions through voice commands, menus accessed through controls on the steering wheel, touch screens, buttons or knobs.

C-MAX Hybrid also offers the next generation of SmartGauge with EcoGuide. Designed to help drivers get the most from the C-MAX Hybrid, information such as instantaneous fuel economy can be displayed on the left cluster to help drivers more closely monitor how their driving behavior affects the vehicle's efficiency.

The left cluster also shows Brake Coach, a feature that helps drivers optimize their use of the braking system so that driving range can be enhanced through proper braking techniques. In the right cluster, redesigned imagery of green leaves shows overall driving efficiency – as drivers improve their efficient driving, they are rewarded with more leaves.

Quality and ingenuity
The 2013 Ford C-MAX Hybrid is new, but its software and hardware technology have been evolving for nearly two decades.

C-MAX Hybrid is powered through the combination of a gasoline engine and a battery-driven electric motor. When powered by gasoline, the C-MAX Hybrid uses the all-new 2.0-liter Atkinson-cycle four-cylinder engine – a powerful and fuel-efficient engine and among the most advanced non-turbocharged four-cylinder powertrains Ford has ever offered.

The electric motor of the C-MAX Hybrid is powered by an advanced li-ion battery system designed to maximize use of common, high-quality components, such as control board hardware that has proven field performance in Ford's critically acclaimed hybrid vehicles.

C-MAX Hybrid also offers Ford's next-generation powersplit architecture that allows the electric motor and gasoline-powered engine to work together or separately to maximize efficiency. The engine also can operate independently of vehicle speed, charging the batteries or providing power to the wheels as needed. The motor alone can provide sufficient power to the wheels in low-speed, low-load conditions and work with the engine at higher speeds.

In the C-MAX Hybrid, the li-ion battery pack is recharged when the gasoline engine is in operation. Further, the regenerative braking system can recapture more than 95 percent of the braking energy that would otherwise be lost, and is able to use that power to help charge the battery. C-MAX Hybrid requires no plug-in charging.

Made in U.S.A.
C-MAX Hybrid is being produced at Ford's Wayne, Mich.-based Michigan Assembly Plant alongside Focus, Focus Electric and Focus ST. More information about MAP can be found online here.

It is one of five electrified vehicles Ford plans to produce in North America in 2012. In addition to C-MAX Energi, the other vehicles include Focus Electric, Fusion Hybrid and Fusion Energi plug-in hybrid. More information about Ford's electrified vehicle lineup can also be found online here.

Customers interested in C-MAX Hybrid build and pricing options should visit here. A video featuring C-MAX can be viewed online by clicking here.

2013 Lincoln MKZ: Things
are definitely looking up

Toronto Star
May 20, 2012
Mark Hacking

Make no mistake: In terms of design, Lincoln was on a bit of a roll already. The luxury division of Ford Motor Company has enjoyed a mini-renaissance with the MKS and MKZ sedans, MKX compact crossover, MKT large crossover and Navigator SUV; new versions of all have been released within the last five years.

Sure, the MKS and MKZ are on the conservative side, but the MKS is better looking than the Ford Edge (upon which it's based) and the mammoth, hearse-like MKT is unlike anything else on the road today. But there have been criticisms. Some observers point out that the MKT looks like a hearse, for example. Others note that the entire Lincoln range consists of rebadged Fords with fancier, re-skinned interiors.

Very recently - as recently as four weeks ago in fact - that label became a little out-dated. That's because, four weeks ago, the all-new 2013 Lincoln MKZ was unveiled at the New York International Auto Show. Sure, the new sedan is still based on a Ford, the latest Fusion in this case. But the design team did not simply slap a waterfall front grille on a staid-looking four-door - new director of design Max Wolff, who forged his reputation at Cadillac, has made sure of that.

Apart from the fact that the new MKZ is a very slick-looking car, it also features some interesting technology. For one, the car dispenses with your typical gear-shifting mechanism in favour of something called Lincoln Drive Control - a push-button gear selector high on the centre console.

The removal of the need for a shift lever has opened up significant space in the centre console and the use of Ford SYNC system with MyLincoln Touch has made things look even cleaner. Thumb-wheel style controls on the steering wheel can operate many of the car’s comfort features, while other functions can be voice-activated through the SYNC system.

But in terms of wow factor, the most impressive part of the new Lincoln is the panoramic glass roof, the world's widest and one of the largest ever for a production vehicle. When retracted, the tinted roof slides backwards on rails, on the outside of the car, over top of the roof and the rear window.

“It's a great product, a full module that incorporates the roof and the back glass,” reported Scott Tobin, Director of Lincoln Product Development, during the reveal in NYC. “It goes back 600 mm, has 5-mm thick tempered glass and a laminate on the inside. The rigidity and the structure are very safe - it meets or exceeds all the safety criteria.”

The roof is reinforced with an aluminum and boron steel frame; this frame is integrated into the overall structure of the car to protect occupants in the event of a rollover. The roof is also rated at SPF 100 to protect from overdoses of vitamin D.

The Lincoln MKZ roof is quite a sight to see, but vision, as it were, seems like it might be an issue: With the darkened roof over top of the rear window, sightlines might be obscured a touch. “There are some small limitations around the cut lines,” Tobin conceded, “but nothing significant, nothing that should cause worry.”

Some people were also divided on how the profile of the MKZ looked with the roof hanging above and beyond the rear window. There's no question that it's a different look compared to every other mass-market sedan around. “There are many exciting things coming in terms of open-air systems from Lincoln,” Tobin confirmed. “Roof systems are right up front on our radar screens.”

While it's certainly far too early to tell if the 2013 Lincoln MKZ will be the car that singlehandedly resurrects the Lincoln brand and sets the stage for a head-to-head-to-head battle with segment leaders Cadillac and Lexus, it definitely looks the business.

Ford to spend more this
year on Facebook ads

Automaker reports success engaging consumers on site

By Jaclyn Trop
The Detroit News
MAy 19, 2012

Ford Motor Co. is ramping up its advertising relationship with Facebook, as cross-town rival General Motors Co. will halt paid ads on the world's biggest social media service.

Ford said Wednesday it plans to spend more money this year on advertising its vehicles through Facebook, which has gone public Friday. GM announced Tuesday that it plans to cancel its $10 million budget for Facebook promotions, saying that advertising through the social media network is ineffective. It will keep a Facebook presence through fan pages.

Ford sees opportunities with Facebook to engage consumers for the launch of new vehicles, including this summer's much-anticipated Ford Escape crossover utility vehicle and Fusion sedan, said Scott Monty, Ford's director of social media. "We find it's a very effective way for us to reach consumers."

Ford has found success reaching many consumers at once through Facebook. More than a million interacted with the automaker's Mustang customizer feature when it launched earlier this year on its Mustang Facebook page.

Monty declined to say how much Ford planned to spend this year on its Facebook advertising campaign.

Social media consultant Erik Qualman said he's not surprised GM is pulling out of Facebook advertising. "Social media at its core is all about relationship building and Facebook is trying to put an old messaging system, which is kind of billboard messaging, onto a new era, which isn't working," Qualman said.

CAW Contact
Volume 42, No. 19
May 18, 2012

 BC Labour Board Rules Email Addresses Must Be Provided 

CAW Local 114 was involved in a significant victory on a recent reconsideration case at the BC Labour Relations Board involving Viking Air.
 
At issue was whether or not a provincially regulated employer was required to turn over email addresses in its possession to the union upon request and whether or not this right was inherent in the BC Labour Relations Code. The union argued the email addresses were critical to efficient communication with its membership.
 
The CAW filed the complaint against Viking Air when it moved to a paperless pay stub system and required all employees to provide an email address for this purpose. The CAW took the position that the union should be on an equal footing with the employer with respect to employee contact information.
 
The CAW filed an appeal of the original Viking Air decision and approached BC Federation of Labour President Jim Sinclair to put the word out to other unions to join in fighting on this important issue, said CAW National Representative Gavin McGarrigle.
 
UFCW Local 1518 intervened and filed a brief in support of the CAW application with the BC Labour Relations Board.
 
The BC Labour Relations Board issued its reconsideration decision on April 25, 2012, overturning the original decision and ruling unanimously in favour of the union.
 
As a result, all provincially regulated employers in BC must now provide not only names, addresses and phone numbers to any union upon request, but also must also provide email addresses of members if it collects them, as long as the information can be easily supplied and the employer does not have a sound business reason to refuse to provide the information, said McGarrigle.
 
"This decision is one of the first in Canada to deal explicitly with the issue of email addresses," McGarrigle said. "We believe this decision is a major step forward into the twenty-first century in the labour movement's ability to represent and communicate with our members using modern technology."

Youth Unemployment Requires Government Action

Despite some good news about job creation in Canada last month, CAW President Ken Lewenza says he remains concerned that younger workers are not benefitting and he renewed his call for a national jobs strategy.
 
Lewenza was reacting to Statistics Canada's monthly report on jobs for April released on May 11 that showed that employment increased by 58,000 jobs, but Lewenza said the report also highlights numerous troubling issues for job seekers in Canada.
 
Even though employment increased, the unemployment rate last month actually nudged up by 0.1 per cent to 7.3 per cent as a result of more people looking for work.
 
Lewenza said while there is some good news with more full time jobs being created, the unemployment rate remains high and noted that younger workers in particular are having a tough time finding jobs.
 
Statistics Canada said youth employment in April was little changed with an unemployment rate of 13.9 per cent. Youth employment has remained around the same level since July, 2009, Stats Canada said.
 
"Young people are not able to find jobs in this economy and the federal government must do more to ensure our youth secure decent full time jobs," Lewenza said. "The federal government must show a lot more leadership on the stubborn issue of youth unemployment in Canada."
 
Lewenza repeated his call for a multi-stakeholder, national good jobs summit in the wake of ongoing structural changes in the Canadian labour market, including the loss of more than half a million good paying manufacturing and processing jobs in the last seven years.

Food is a Human Right: National Food Policy Needed

As the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food winds up his mission to Canada, Food Secure Canada is calling for a national food policy,  based on the recommendations in Resetting the Table: A People's Food Policy for Canada. 

"The Special Rapporteur has traveled in Canada for the past 10 days, hearing staggering statistics and stories about food insecurity, health issues and the outrageous costs of food in remote and Northern regions. He has reminded us that food is a basic human right, and Canada is failing in its obligations to fulfill this right," said Diana Bronson, Executive Director of Food Secure Canada, in a May 16 press release.
 
"In order to change this, we need to move towards developing a comprehensive national food policy. As underlined by the Rapporteur, any national food policy must be participatory and include dedicated seats at the table for civil society, Aboriginal peoples and those who are directly affected by food insecurity. The ground-breaking process behind the People's Food Policy can be used as a model."
 
Based on the input of over 3,500 Canadians, the People's Food Policy calls for:
 
1. A federal poverty prevention and elimination program, with measurable targets and timelines. At a minimum, all government income supports and minimum wage must be set at rates that guarantee being able to fulfill basic rights, including food and shelter.
2. A national children and food strategy, including federal support for student nutrition programs. Every time a child goes to school hungry because they cannot access food, it is a denial of their human rights.
3. Taking immediate steps towards support for ecological and local food production and consumption, including movement on institutional procurement.
4. Public promotion of healthy food choices - which can save billions of dollars in health care.
5. Immediately addressing the ongoing food insecurity and water crises in Native and Northern communities, in collaboration with Aboriginal peoples and other Northern communities.
 
FSC helped organize meetings between the U.N. Special Rapporteur and civil society groups in Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto and Winnipeg. The CAW is a member organization of FSC. For more information please visit http://www.foodsecurecanada.org/.

Reverse Changes to Temporary Foreign Worker Program

A growing group of unions and non-government organizations (NGOs) say that recently announced changes to the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) permitting employers to pay migrant workers up to 15 per cent less and fast tracking employer applications for these workers are unfair and misguided. The CAW is supporting this joint effort.
 
"Allowing employers faster access to migrant workers and paying them less for their labour sends a message that this government believes migrant workers are not equal," says Hassan Yussuff, Secretary-Treasurer of the Canadian Labour Congress. He was speaking at an Ottawa news conference attended by unions and NGOs on May 15.
 
Ottawa has announced changes, effective immediately, to the TFWP and has included those changes in a large omnibus budget bill that is being pushed through Parliament.
 
"Canada's laws don't support wage discrimination based on where you come from," says Yasmeen Khan, with Migrante Canada. "Many people recognize the majority of migrant workers are people of colour and oppose wage discrimination based on race."
 
Naveen Mehta, General Counsel and Director of Human Rights, Equity and Diversity with the United Food and Commercial Workers, says, "Rather than further skewing Canada's Temporary Foreign Worker Program to unfairly serve employers' interests, what is needed are stronger compliance, monitoring and enforcement measures to protect migrant workers' rights."
 
Sign onto the pledge to call for the reversal of the discriminatory changes to the already flawed TFWP: http://www.canadianlabour.ca/action-center/pay-less-wage-model-unfair-migrant-workers 

WTO called on to Dismiss Japan, EU Challenge to Renewable Energy Policy

Canadian NGOs and labour unions, including the CAW, have sent an amicus curiae submission to the World Trade Organization (WTO) prior to a May 15 hearing into Japan's and the European Union's joint attack on the Ontario Green Energy Act.
 
The groups address Canada's failure to properly defend Ontario's actions and call upon the WTO to respect the priority of Canada's international climate change obligations.
 
"These are the first international trade disputes which create the potential for conflict between a nation's commitments under the WTO and its obligations under the Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Kyoto Protocol," says the submission.
 
"It raises fundamental questions about whether the goals of trade liberalization can be reconciled with ecological imperatives to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and if not, which are to prevail," says the joint submission from Blue Green Canada, the CAW, the Canadian Federation of Students, the Canadian Union of Public Employees, Communications, Energy and Paperworkers union of Canada, the Council of Canadians and the Ontario Public Service Employees Union.
 
Canada, the EU and Japan are signatories to the Framework Convention and Kyoto Protocol, which seek to avert catastrophic climate change.
 
Unfortunately, say the Canadian civil society groups, the Harper government is playing into Japan's and EU hands by ignoring these international climate change treaties. In fact, having recently repudiated its commitments under the Kyoto Protocol, Canada has threatened to use the WTO to challenge climate measures such as fuel quality standards in the United States and EU.
 
The Canadian NGOs and labour unions involved in the amicus curiae submission have a strong presence and hundreds of thousands of members in Ontario, including those in the green energy sector. They support the phase-out of coal-fired electrical power generation and the development of renewable energy infrastructure and power generation to replace it.
 
The submission was prepared by Steven Shrybman, international trade and public interest lawyer with Sack, Goldblatt Mitchell LLP.
 
The Canadian NGOs and labour unions insist that the WTO should resist efforts by countries like Japan, the EU and Canada to enlist its dispute procedures to defeat or discourage climate measures. WTO dispute panels must recognize and accede to the jurisdiction and competence of multi-lateral institutions and instruments, including the Kyoto Protocol, designed to address the climate change imperative.

Two Workplace Fatalities

Two FFAW/CAW members died on the job during the first week of May.
 
Ralph Rose, 64, from St. Carol's, Newfoundland and
Labrador died May 1 after he fell backward from the shelter to the main deck on a fishing vessel.
 
Harrison Genge, 57, from Anchor Point, Newfoundland and Labrador died on May 7  after being crushed by a shrimp dumper.

Outstanding CAW Retired Worker of the Year Award

Nominations are being sought for the Outstanding CAW Retired Worker of the Year.
 
This annual award is presented to a CAW retired activist who has made a major contribution to their local union and community.
 
All nominations must comply with criteria for the award and must be approved by the chairperson of your Retired Workers' chapter and the local union executive board, and be signed by the President.
 
The deadline for submitting nominations is June  15, 2012. They may be faxed to 416-495-6554, attention of Dean Lindsay.
 
Please contact Dean if you have questions regarding the award at 1-800-268-5763, ext. 3791, directly at 416-495-3791 or email to deanlindsay@caw.ca
 

Women in Trades Conference

CAW Atlantic Area Director Les Holloway; Anna Marenick, Human Resources Manager, Irving Shipbuilding; Koren Beaman, Chairperson of the Women's Committee, CAW/MWF Local 1; and Rachael Farrell, Welder/Apprentice Steelworker, Halifax Shipyard
 

 More than 160 participants took part in a women in engineering, science, trades and technology conference in Halifax recently.
 
The conference highlighted the opportunities and important role that women can play in trades and technology. A number of CAW members participated in the conference, which ran from May 3 to 5.   
 
"I feel as a woman in the trades that we are making great strides in becoming more and more involved with trades and science," said Koren Beaman, chairperson of the CAW/MWF Local 1 Women's Committee. "At the conference it was nice to see so many younger women interested in trades and science," Beaman said.
 
"I feel the conference was a huge encouragement to the women and men in these fields," said CAW member Rachael Farrell, an iron worker apprentice in the Halifax shipyard. "Even though we still have along ways to go, we as females have made a huge impression in the trades. And we will continue to grow the more we work together and make it a traditional work place for women. Going forward, I feel the conference was a huge success and should continue for years to come," said Farrell.

Health and Safety Conference: Reminder

The 2012 CAW National Health and Safety Conference will be held June 8 to 10 at the CAW Family Education Centre in Port Elgin, Ontario.
 
The conference will feature plenary sessions and workshops offering interactive tools, information, thought-provoking exercises, dialogue and it will help develop shifts in perspective.
 
The deadline for registration is May 18. For more information contact the CAW Health and Safety Department at cawhse@caw.ca.

CLC Job Posting

The Canadian Labour Congress has a vacancy for a regional representative in the Pacific Region, based in Vancouver, British Columbia.
 
Please send your application to hr@clc-ctc.ca and include bulletin number 2012-03 in the subject line. Only applicants selected for an interview will be contacted.
 
Applications will be accepted until May 28, 2012.

Ford to lead rollouts of new models

Automaker to change 26% of its lineup for 2013-16, report says

May 17, 2012
By Jaclyn Trop The Detroit News

Ford Motor Co. will offer more new car models over the next three years than any other automaker, according to a Bank of America/Merrill Lynch report released Wednesday.

Ford will change 26 percent of its lineup for the model years 2013 through 2016 compared with an industry average of 23 percent, the bank's annual "Car Wars" report said.

General Motors Co. will replace 25 percent of its vehicles, followed by Toyota Motor Corp. at 24 percent and Nissan Motor Co. at 23 percent. Chrysler Group LLC will change only 20 percent of its vehicle lineup.

Most of those new models will be crossover utility vehicles, luxury sedans and light trucks.

Consumers gravitate toward new models, which can help increase an automaker's market share, profits and stock price. Automakers that replaced the most models and had the youngest cars in the showroom "generally gained market share" between 2002 and 2012, the report said.

GM and Chrysler replaced just an average of 13 percent of their vehicle models between 2002 and 2012, the lowest in the industry, followed by Ford at 14 percent. During that time, GM and Ford lost market share of 8.7 percent and 5.1 percent, respectively. Chrysler maintained its market share for the decade.

The industry as a whole will introduce 176 new vehicle models between 2013 and 2016, about 19 percent more than were introduced between 1990 and 2012, according to the report.

"Company turnarounds are not built solely on cutting costs but also on generating higher revenue on new vehicles," said Edmunds.com Senior Analyst Michelle Krebs.

"It's very simple," Krebs said. "The company with the newest vehicle wins" with more sales volume and higher profits.

New vehicles with strong consumer demand, such as Ford's highly anticipated Escape SUV and Fusion sedan this summer, require fewer incentives and can command a higher price, Krebs said.

Both Ford and GM have had recent success revamping new models, including the new Ford Explorer and Focus and the new Chevy Aveo and Cobalt, Krebs said.

Ford recalls 70,000 vehicles
for variety of issues

By David Shepardson
Detroit News Washington Bureau
May 14, 2012

Ford Motor Co. is issuing several small recalls for 70,000 vehicles to address rusting issues and potentially faulty gear shifts.

The Dearborn automaker is recalling 10,500 2011-12 F-150s, 2012 Expeditions, 2012 Lincoln Navigators and 2012-13 Ford Mustangs for potential problems with the transmissions.

Ford said the transmission may not go into reverse — or if it does reverse, the "R" may not illuminate on the dashboard — or when the driver pushes the shift level, the backup lamp on the rear of the vehicle may not light up.

Ford will inspect and replace the transmission range sensor that was calibrated out of specification. The recall will begin on June 25.

Ford is also recalling 50,000 Ford Windstars sold or registered in Virginia in two campaigns that were built between 1999-2003.

Both are expansions of recalls announced in 2010 and 2011.

Ford is also recalling 9,400 1998-2003 Windstars sold or registered in Puerto Rico that could have rear axles that could crack.

Mulally will lead Ford
until job accomplished

Daniel Howes
May 13, 2012

Ford President and CEO Alan Mulally addresses the media during a news conference after the Ford 57th Annual Meeting of Shareholders in Wilmington, Delaware.

Rest easy, Ford Motor Co. shareholders: CEO Alan Mulally isn't going anywhere anytime soon because he doesn't have to — and because he's not done.

The industrial revival of the Dearborn automaker Mulally has led for nearly six years is by now an undeniable fact. But the sustainability of that comeback, and the enduring legacy of its leader, depends on whether the king of the house Henry Ford built can replicate his success in old Europe and, especially, across Russia, China and India.

No, he's not done, as Mulally and his boss, Executive Chairman Bill Ford Jr., signaled Thursday at Ford's annual meeting in Delaware. Mulally wants it all — American revival, European sustainability, Asian expansion — and he wants credit for doing it the old-fashioned way:

No direct federal bailouts; no wholesale housecleaning of the executive ranks; no shotgun alliances with weak foreign competitors to fix operational problems that good, solid products usually can fix; and no question that he is the pre-eminent turnaround guy in American business.

Enter Mulally 2.0, even if they don't officially call it that. It's the push by Ford to inoculate itself against complacency and become a world-class automaker to rival the best from Japan, Germany and South Korea. And it's the push by the CEO to assemble a predictable leadership succession plan devoid of the surprises that can lead to jarring changes in strategy.

Investors generally don't like surprises and they don't like arbitrary change, which is why this recurring "when-will-Alan-leave" obsession is so infantile and so dumb. Why would the fit, energetic 66-year-old CEO want to go now, why would he want to see his successor come from outside his carefully nurtured team, and why would Bill Ford and the company's directors want him to go when a) his job isn't done and b) his succession plan is in place?

He wouldn't and they wouldn't. That's why a longtime director told me earlier this year, as rumors swirled that CFO Lewis Booth was mulling a retirement he's since taken, that Ford's board hoped to retain the existing management team — with Mulally at its head — for as long as possible.

Given the Blue Oval's fractious history of executive infighting spinning the revolving doors atop the Glass House, there is little long-term purpose served by sending ol' Alan packing back to Seattle just because he'll turn 67 in August. Anyone out there remember the name Bob Lutz?

The chances that Mulally will be running Ford into his 80s, a la Lutz, are nil. But the chances that the CEO will be replaced by Americas President Mark Fields — "The job is his to lose," says Bryce Hoffman, author of "American Icon: Alan Mulally and the Fight to Save Ford Motor Company" — are very good, but not certain and just not yet.

Six years and billions in profits into the Mulally era, Ford still is in the process of proving itself. Make money in the United States with a union workforce? Check. Retire debt to even the competitive landscape with rivals? Check. Deliver cars, trucks and crossovers customers around the world want to buy? Check.

But three critical areas remain unproven: Can Ford transform itself outside North America with the same clarity and competitive legitimacy as its U.S. turnaround? Has it exorcised complacency from its corporate DNA, or will it re-emerge soon after Mulally and his discipline do, finally, leave?

And can a company with a long, Byzantine history of driving talent out the door prove, with Mulally's successor and evolving management team, that it can develop top flight talent all by itself? The answer will shape Mulally's legacy, test Bill Ford's judgment and influence Ford's ability to recruit talent.

Whether executive succession at Ford ends up being home grown (preferred by Bill Ford and the company's directors) or is once again imported from another industry also will affect the Blue Oval's perception among investors and, ultimately, the value of the company.

That's another reason Mulally isn't done: Despite demonstrable progress, the people who make a living studying companies and reflecting their judgment in the buying and selling of shares still don't think the Blue Oval has finished the job Mulally began in September 2006.

And he knows it.

Idea man Carroll Shelby
was auto legend

High-performance vehicle designer worked
in racing, consulting, philanthropy

Doug Guthrie
Detroit News
May 12, 2012

The great snake charmer, Carroll Shelby, the force behind Ford's Cobra Mustangs and Chrysler's Viper racing and high-performance street machines, died Thursday at a Dallas hospital. He was 89.

"Carroll Shelby is America's Enzo Ferrari. He created some of the greatest American performance cars the world has ever seen," said Scott Oldham, editor of automobile authority Edmunds.com. "His legend will live forever through those great machines."

A down-on-his-luck chicken farmer from east Texas who took up auto racing at almost age 30, Shelby parlayed his on-track successes driving sports cars into a career as a high-performance innovator. He wasn't an engineer and said he never wanted to be, just an idea man and a force to make things happen.

He also was one of the nation's longest-surviving heart transplant recipients, having received a heart in 1990. Shelby's son, Michael, donated a kidney to his father in 1996.

Shelby was a consummate pitchman, building more than a half-dozen successful careers as a champion race car driver, racing team owner, automobile manufacturer, automotive consultant, African safari tour operator, raconteur, chili entrepreneur and philanthropist. He was married seven times.

Shelby's last Cobra was unveiled this spring. The 662-horsepower 2013 Ford Shelby GT500 Mustang is the most powerful production V-8 in the world, according to Ford Motor Co. Shelby worked with Ford engineers on the race track at Sebring, Fla., and the automaker's Arizona Proving Grounds, sometimes driving more than eight hours in the car.

Born into poverty, Shelby served as a flight instructor during World War II and went bankrupt as a chicken farmer. But as a racing driver, he was twice named Sports Illustrated magazine's Driver of the Year.

His first race was a quarter-mile drag meet in 1952, behind the wheel of a V-8 Ford-powered hot rod. In 1959, he became only the second American to win the prestigious 24-hour race at Le Mans. He co-drove an Aston Martin with Roy Salvadori.

Shelby's legend grew when it was revealed that he took nitroglycerin pills while racing to ease searing chest pains from a heart condition.

He stepped out of the cockpit shortly after the LeMans win to turn his attention to owning and designing race cars.

"He's an icon in the medical world and an icon in the automotive world," his longtime friend, Dick Messer, executive director of Los Angeles' Petersen Automotive Museum, once said of Shelby. "His legacy is the diversity of his life. He's incredibly innovative."

The first Cobra used Ford engines in a British AC sport car chassis. It was the fastest production model ever made when it was displayed at the New York Auto Show in 1962.

A year later, Cobras were winning races over Chevrolet's Corvettes, and in 1964 the Rip Chords had a Top 5 hit on the Billboard pop chart with "Hey, Little Cobra."

"Spring, little Cobra, getting ready to strike, spring, little Cobra, with all of your might. Hey, little Cobra, don't you know you're gonna shut 'em down?"

Shelby went on to lead Ford's GT40 team that beat Ferrari in 1966 at LeMans, taking all three of the top spots. Ford won at LeMans in 1967, 1968 and 1969.

It was Lee Iacocca, then head of Ford Motor Co., who assigned Shelby the task of designing a fastback model of Ford's Mustang that could compete against the Corvette for young male buyers.

Turning a vehicle he had once dismissed as "a secretary car" into a high-performance model was "the hardest thing I've done in my life," Shelby said.

That car and the Shelby Cobra made him a household name.

"Today, we have lost a legend in Ford Motor Co.'s history, and my family and I have lost a dear friend," said Edsel Ford II, great-grandson of Henry Ford.

"Carroll Shelby is one of the most recognized names in performance car history, and he's been successful at everything he's done. Whether helping Ford dominate the 1960s racing scene or building some of the most famous Mustangs, his enthusiasm and passion for great automobiles over six decades has truly inspired everyone who worked with him. He was a great innovator whose legend at Ford never will be forgotten."

When the energy crisis of the 1970s limited the market for gas-guzzling high-performance cars, Shelby weathered the downturn by heading to Africa, where he operated a safari company.

By the time he returned to the U.S. in 1981, Iacocca was running Chrysler and he hired Shelby to design the supercharged Viper.

Shelby returned to Ford to collaborate on the rebirth of the Ford GT supercar and the continuing series of high horsepower Shelby Mustangs.

In 1991, he founded the Carroll Shelby Children's Foundation to provide assistance for children and young people needing acute coronary and kidney care. Detroit News writer and author Bryce G. Hoffman said Shelby sensed his nervousness taking the icon for a ride on a rainy day in 2006 around Ford's Dearborn test track in a 500-horsepower Shelby GT. Even at 83, the thrill of speed and confidence in his creation came shining through.

"Don't worry," Shelby told Hoffman. "You can push her as hard as you want. … Let's show 'em a nice rooster tail."

Hoffman said Shelby also was reflective.

"By the time you reach my age, you realize that things like ego and money don't matter," Shelby said.

"I do what I do because I love it. I've spent my life building and driving cars like this. It doesn't get much better than that."

CAW Contact
May 11, 2012
Volume 42, No. 18

SNC-Lavalin Puts High-tech Jobs at Risk, says CEP and CAW

SNC-Lavalin is jeopardizing the future of the struggling CANDU industry, and sending highly-skilled workers out of the country, by forcing its employees into a strike position, say two of Canada's top labour leaders.
 
CEP and CAW have each pledged $1 million to help finance a potential strike by the Society of Professional Engineers and Associates.
 
More than 94 per cent of SPEA members voted recently to take strike action following repeated attempts by their employer to extract concessions at the bargaining table, including a weaker pension plan. 
 
"Our joint support sends a clear message about the importance of keeping highly-skilled workers here in Canada," says CEP President Dave Coles. "We need to be taking measures to keep these jobs in here, not send them down south."
 
"SNC-Lavalin appears intent on provoking a labour dispute, instead of working to strengthen the industry and promote much needed innovation," said CAW President Ken Lewenza. "This is extremely short-sighted and we will continue to support the SPEA."
 
Coles says a strike will undoubtedly result in a serious shortage of highly-skilled staff, impacting ongoing projects as well as thousands of spin-offs jobs.

Evraz Camrose Works Locks Out Local 551 Members

CAW Local 551 members locked out at Evraz Camrose Works in Alberta.
 

Pipeline manufacturer Evraz Camrose Works has locked out workers at its plant in Camrose, Alberta.
 
The company locked out members of CAW Local
551 on May 5, including trades persons, machine operators and labourers in an attempt to extract pension, retiree benefits and other concessions from the workforce.
 
"Despite a recent collective agreement with a sister plant the company continues to refuse to offer a fair and equitable agreement for our members," said CAW national representative Todd Romanow. At an emergency meeting on May 4, the membership unanimously endorsed the bargaining committees' recommendation not to accept the company's last offer.
 
Romanow said the CAW bargaining committee remains determined to negotiate an agreement and urged the company to return to the bargaining table.
 
The CAW contract with Evraz expired on February 1, 2012 and negotiations have been ongoing since November 2011. Evraz manufactures tubular goods and line pipe for the oil and natural gas industries.

Lobster Pricing Dispute Over in Newfoundland

The FFAW/CAW and the Seafood Producers of Newfoundland and Labrador have reached an agreement on lobster prices for the remainder of the 2012 season, which brings to an end a two-week dispute in which many lobster buyers refused to buy lobster
 
The agreement continues to tie prices to market conditions, adjusted on a weekly basis.
 
FFAW President Earle McCurdy said the key factor from the union's perspective is that the price to harvesters will continue to be based on market conditions.
 
During collective bargaining this spring, the union proposed a price-to-market formula, while buyers wanted to set the price themselves. Most of those buyers refused to buy after a provincial panel ruled in favour of the FFAW.
 
The union filled the vacuum by organizing harvesters into a co-operative structure in partnership with the Fogo Island Co-op. The co-op has shipped five tractor trailer loads of lobster or about $1million worth.
 
"The buyers were convinced we would fall flat on our face with this initiative," McCurdy said in a May 4 news release. "They only got serious about settling the dispute when they realized that we meant business, and that the harvesters didn't need them to move their lobsters."
 
McCurdy said it was "remarkable" that a fledgling organization was able to coordinate the sale on short notice, but with the lobster season set to open on the Northern Peninsula and other areas the co-op would have been "hard pressed" to keep up with demand.
 
Establishing the co-op structure was crucial to getting buyers back to the table, McCurdy said.
 
But he added that the co-op is here to stay. With the price impasse resolved the elected board of directors will have the time, in co-operation with the union and the Fogo Island Co-op, to develop a long term plan.
 
"Now we have time to organize the kind of infrastructure and marketing structure you need to be a major player in that industry."
 
McCurdy said he's confident that 2012 will end up being a "turning point in the evolution of the lobster fishery in this province."

Walk for Peace Highlights Native Land Claims

CAW members from numerous local unions took part in The Walk for Peace, Respect and Friendship on April 25 in Caledonia, Ontario.
(Photo by Kevin Konnyu).
 

The Walk for Peace, Respect and Friendship in Caledonia, Ontario on April 28 remained a peaceful expression of support for native land claims, despite predictions from critics it would turn nasty.
 
"Everyone who took part, including many CAW members, are just so pleased with the peaceful, incident-free way that the walk unfolded," said retired CAW national representative Steve Watson, an organizer of the event. Caledonia is located about 35 kilometres south west of Brantford, along the banks of the Grand River. 
 
Ken Hewitt, Caledonia's mayor, tried to get an injunction to stop the Walk for Peace. No injunction was granted.
 
"I was so impressed by the young activists in the Six Nations Solidarity Network and the skill and resourcefulness they displayed in navigating one of the trickiest disputes in Canada," said Watson.
 
The CAW was well represented in the walk. There were members from CAW Locals 504, 1106, 1285, 252, 2163, 636 and the Retired Workers Chapter of CAW Local 127. They included two Local Union Presidents Bill McLachlan (1106) and Carl Cywink (Local 2163). 
 

Ford profit picture is praised
at annual meeting

Alisa Priddle
Detroit Free Press
May 11, 2012

There was more praise than controversy from the 63 shareholders who attended Ford's 57th-annual meeting Thursday in Wilmington, Del.

Even a grilling afterward by the few reporters who attended got more joshing than straight talk in attempts to pin down how long CEO Alan Mulally, 66, will stay on the job. Mulally is credited with turning the company around, and Ford wants to ensure a smooth succession when he retires.

The shareholder meeting, over in a record 45 minutes, saw the election of the 16 current directors, and none of the proposals to alter the dual-stock status or voting rights passed.

No one complained that Ford stock has fallen 29% since May 10, 2011. It closed at $10.71, up 2 cents from Wednesday and well below the 52-week high of $15.35.

Instead there was applause for a leadership team that has delivered three consecutive years of increased profitability, culminating in 2011's $8.8 billion in pretax operating profit and this year's restoration of a dividend suspended since 2006.

"Your company is doing well these days," Ford Executive Chairman Bill Ford said, renewing a commitment to reduce costs while investing for growth.

Ford's $136.3 billion in 2011 revenue ranked ninth in the 2012 Fortune 500 list, released earlier this week.

"We are no longer turning around; we are moving ahead," Mulally told shareholders.

But he warned it will be difficult to maintain last year's 16.8% market share in the U.S. because of the overall strength of the recovering market.

He said about one-third of sales will come from Asia-Pacific by 2020 and while Europe is recovering, it remains an area of uncertainty that is dragging down Ford's share price.

Mulally said Ford expects global sales of 8 million vehicles by 2015 from 5.3 million in 2010.

"In the past couple of years, Ford has emphasized small cars with the new Ford Focus and Ford Fiesta. But this year marks a significant transition to all-new Escape and Fusion models," said Edmunds.com analyst Michelle Krebs.

"This year is also important as Ford executes a very pricey initiative to add manufacturing capacity, distribution and new models in Asia Pacific, most notably in China and India. This is a massive effort at the expense of Ford's profits right now, but is necessary for a future payoff in those fast-growing markets."

The few people who stepped up to the mike at the meeting were full of praise for the automaker.

Jane Garcia of Detroit, who Bill Ford described as a "human dynamo" in the community, thanked Ford for being a strong company and taxpayer.

An emotional Janice Smith, a retiree in Cleveland, thanked the company for a "wonderful career" and offered to share her ideas to promote Ford going forward. She said her first car was a Ford Maverick, something she has in common with President Barack Obama.

Shareholders also endorsed compensation of the top executives -- Mulally received a 2011 package worth $29.5 million -- without comment

CAW Local 584 Elections

*Retirees can vote for Executive and Standing Committee Chairs. They are not eligible to vote for in plant, health and safety, benefits or any of their alternates. Retirees will be required to enter through the lobby on Dixie and sign in with security. The polls will be open on May 8 from 11:30am - 5:00pm in the downstairs cafeteria. Run offs, if necessary, will take place on May 23 from 11:30am - 5:00pm.

McGuinty says Ontario
will assist its 'leading
goal scorer' – the auto sector

KAREN HOWLETT AND GREG KEENAN
Globe and Mail
May 9, 2012

The cash-strapped Ontario government is prepared to invest more money in the auto sector to help car companies respond to a strong sales recovery, Premier Dalton McGuinty says.

"They are in a sense our leading goal scorer," Mr. McGuinty told reporters Tuesday. "They put the puck in the net over and over again on behalf of the Ontario economy. We need to find ways to ensure that they remain healthy.

Mr. McGuinty made the comments after speaking to a business audience at the Bloomberg Canada Economic Summit in Toronto.

He was responding to a Globe and Mail report about a study done for the federal government that said the Detroit Three auto makers could run short of vehicle-making capacity later in the decade after slashing capacity deeply during the 2008-2009 recession and auto crisis.

The need to increase capacity by 2018 comes as Ottawa and the Ontario government assess a Ford Motor Co. plan to spend $1.2-billion to upgrade its Oakville, Ont., plant to assemble vehicles based on a global platform. The auto maker wants financial assistance for the project and has said it will not go ahead unless there is government support.

Based on the 20-per-cent financing level the two governments provided for the retooling of that plant in 2005-2006, the auto maker is seeking at least $240-million in financial help for the global platform.

Mr. McGuinty said he will look at whether his government should "deploy our limited business supports" in the auto sector, which is a key pillar of Ontario's battered manufacturing sector and is bouncing back so strongly that Ford, its Detroit rivals and other auto makers are boosting production as quickly as possible.

The Detroit Three slashed production capacity by 2.6 million vehicles in 2008-2009 and now they're struggling to meet demand that is recovery more quickly than their ability to meet it.

Ford said Tuesday that the usual two-week summer shutdown will be cut to one week at U.S. assembly plants and seven North American engine and transmission factories – including the Essex Engine Plant in Windsor, Ont. – as it tries to crank out more cars and trucks.

Those moves will boost production by 40,000 vehicles during the third quarter, Ford said.

Ford operated its North American assembly plants at 108 per cent of capacity during the first quarter.

"This is a great kind of a problem to have," Mr. McGuinty said. "They're telling us that we need to produce more cars, so we'll have an opportunity to consolidate if not indeed enhance our standing as the No. 1 producer of cars in North America."

The auto sector has grown in Ontario and retained its pre-eminence even in the "darkest days of the recession," Mr. McGuinty said, because his government has worked hand in hand with it.

Canada seen benefiting as U.S. auto makers scramble to restore capacity

GREG KEENAN AND STEVEN CHASE
Globe & Mail
May 9, 2012

The Detroit Three auto makers suddenly can't make enough vehicles – a development that could benefit Canada and give the federal and Ontario governments the upper hand as the companies seek hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars to redevelop Canadian vehicle assembly plants.

Chrysler Group LLC, Ford Motor Co. and General Motors Co. slashed so much production capacity during the 2008-2009 crisis that they have to rush now to restore it to respond to a strong sales recovery and forecasts that the North American market will be even more robust later in the decade.

"By 2018, capacity shortages are projected to be an issue for the Detroit Three," says a study done for the federal government by the Center for Automotive Research (CAR), an industry think-tank based in Ann Arbor, Mich., and obtained by The Globe and Mail.

The current shortage and the one looming near the end of the decade will make it difficult for the companies to close any more Canadian facilities and to persuade policy makers to step up with subsidies or see billions of dollars in auto investment directed elsewhere.

There are also implications for the Canadian Auto Workers union in crucial talks on a new contract this summer with the companies. The need to keep pumping out vehicles to meet robust demand means the companies will be less willing to risk a strike.

The production shortages even raise a glimmer of hope for a shuttered GM truck plant in Oshawa, Ont.

While each of the Detroit companies is adding production at U.S. plants, the CAR study indicates Chrysler and GM will run short of capacity to make pickup trucks and other full-frame vehicles by 2015, while Ford will need more capacity for passenger cars and crossovers – known as unibody vehicles – by 2018.

The CAR report, which was designed to assess the importance of the companies' Canadian factories to their North American operations, was submitted to the federal government on Feb. 27 and obtained through an Access to Information request by The Globe and Mail. Industry Canada refused to make public 21 pages of the 28-page study.

If forecasts that GM's sales will rise to 3.6 million vehicles by 2015 and 3.7 million by 2018 are correct, GM could lose market share because it won't be able to build enough trucks, the CAR study said.

"GM's Oshawa plants (including the idled Oshawa Truck) could each be candidates for full-frame investment or conversion," it said.

Ford has asked the governments for financial aid to build a global platform at its assembly plant in Oakville, Ont., a project worth more than $1-billion. The plant makes crossovers, the kind of unibody vehicles for which demand is rising.

Ford had said before the market turnaround that the project wouldn't go ahead without government support, and that if it was scrapped, the factory likely would have to close.

"I don't see them having the room, frankly, to shut another plant," said one industry source familiar with Ford's future production needs.

But keeping the factory open will likely still require help from the governments and the CAW, which will be under pressure to reduce labour costs.

The robust market that's causing the Detroit Three to add shifts and cancel summer shutdowns strengthens the union's position. Chrysler's plant in Brampton, Ont., for example, is the only factory assembling the Chrysler 300 and Dodge Charger and Challenger full-sized sedans.

Combined sales of the three cars soared 63 per cent in the first four months of the year, so Chrysler could be reluctant to undergo a strike.

Auto makers eliminated 2.6 million units of production capacity between 2008 and 2011.

"If the U.S. market is coming back at 10 or 11 per cent a year for the next three years, where are you going to make them?" asked one U.S. industry analyst.

Ohio Court of Appeals reverses
$2B judgment against Ford

By Keith Naughton and David Voreacos
Bloomberg NewsMay 8, 2012

The Ohio Court of Appeals has thrown out a $2 billion award against Ford Motor Co. and ordered a new trial for a class of commercial-truck dealers who claimed the automaker overcharged them for 11 years.

The reversal of the largest judgment Ford had faced was revealed by the automaker Friday in a government filing. The state appeals court in Cleveland found May 3 that the trial judge improperly excluded evidence presented by Ford. The dealers can request that the Ohio Supreme Court review the ruling.

The dealers sued Ford in 2002, claiming the company broke an agreement to sell trucks at published prices, which forced them to pay more from 1987 through 1998 and cut into profits. Cuyahoga County Judge Peter J. Corrigan last June upheld a $4.5 million verdict awarded to one Ohio dealer in February 2011 by a Cleveland jury. He also said Ford had to pay similar damages and interest to a class of about 3,000 other dealers.

"We look forward to trying the case before a jury that will be able to consider all the evidence that was improperly excluded in the first trial," Marcey Evans, a Ford spokeswoman, said Friday.

The $2 billion award was five times higher than the largest-ever jury award against Ford in a lawsuit, according to data compiled by Bloomberg News. The largest jury verdict against Ford was for $369 million in a products-defect case awarded in California in 2004. That verdict was later reduced by trial and appellate courts.

James Lowe, a lawyer for the plaintiffs, declined to comment.

Ford, based in Dearborn, had been identifying the $2 billion award as a financial risk it faced in U.S. filings. The total comprised $800 million in damages and $1.2 billion in pre-judgment interest, Ford said in the filing Friday.

Ford was accused in the lawsuit of breaching an agreement with truck dealers by failing to publish to all of them all price concessions that were approved for any dealer, the company said in a regulatory filing.

Corrigan allowed the dealers to pursue claims against Ford in a class action, or group suit, in 2005. The class includes all Ford dealers who bought from the company any 600 series or higher truck over a period of about 11 years, starting in 1987.

Europe's auto woes unsettle
Detroit 3 carmakers

May 7, 2012
Greg Gardner - Detroit Free Press

Despite the Detroit Three's collective first-quarter profit of $3.2 billion, shares of Ford and General Motors have plunged to their lowest level since December, plans for Chrysler's initial public offering seem like a distant rumor and the potential loss to U.S. taxpayers when the government unwinds its stake in GM is swelling.

The reason is more complicated than one word, but "Europe" is a good place to start.

The European auto industry is suffering the kind of meltdown that happened in the U.S. in late 2008 and 2009. Sales have plummeted to their lowest level in 14 years. And unemployment in some Eurozone countries is the highest on record.

Rather than learn from the successful surgery of GM and Chrysler's 2009 bankruptcies, or from Ford's self-financed North American turnaround, European automakers, to some extent, are able to hide behind the profits of the strong recovery in the U.S.

When a multinational company such as GM makes $1.7 billion in North America, a $256-million loss in Europe may seem manageable. It also can encourage a denial that delays a solution, perhaps indefinitely.

"Europe is the single biggest drag on GM's stock price," said Peter Nesvold, a Jefferies & Co. analyst who follows the company. "They're really between a rock and a hard place."

This has a direct impact on U.S. taxpayers, who still own about 32% of GM's common stock. With those shares closing Friday at $22.36, more than $10 below the price of the company's November 2010 IPO, the government would lose more than $15 billion if it sold all those shares at the current price.

Pain and paralysis
Every automaker knows plants in Europe must close. Some companies will fail or find partners. Tens of thousands of jobs will disappear. But without one unified government and a multinational consensus of how to spread the pain, the industry seems paralyzed.

Each government wants to protects its companies and employees. Those who act first fear competitors will discount their cars and grab market share.

"Somebody is playing chicken with the train here, because everybody is standing there and watching for the other guy to move first and effectively he benefits on the act," Chrysler and Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne told analysts last month.

Marchionne has called on the European Union to come up with a comprehensive plan that has all participants suffering some pain. But in Germany, where GM's Opel unit is languishing, union contracts don't expire until sometime in 2014. France elected a Socialist president, Francois Hollande, on Sunday. Hollande will work with Renault and PSA Peugeot Citroen to keep their plants open.

GM's partnership with Peugeot, announced in February, can save money through joint purchasing and shared development of future models, but GM Chief Financial Officer Dan Ammann said Thursday that those savings won't show up in earnings until 2015 or 2016.

Ford of Europe CEO Stephen Odell told Bloomberg News last week that Ford will cut workdays at plants in Valencia, Spain, and Cologne, Germany, and is reducing output at a third plant in Saarlouis, Germany. Between April 1 and the end of June, Ford plans to build 15% fewer cars in Europe than it produced a year earlier.

Ammann said Opel might be offering buyouts to more senior workers in the near future. GM's $256-million first-quarter loss in Europe was less than many analysts expected.

"We're making progress week to week on the cost front," Ammann said. "Not everything will come with some big announcement."

Damper on spending
Unfortunately, recovery of auto sales could take longer. Most European countries, facing gaping budget deficits, are cutting government spending and raising taxes. Such austerity has boosted unemployment to as high as 24% in Spain and 9.8% in Italy. Although they are meant to bring more discipline, these moves have dampened consumer spending.

"The austerity program is by definition going to ... worsen the demand," Marchionne said. "If there is any value at all in the European Union existing as a functioning body ... this is the time to show its capabilities."

Ford's new Interceptor set
to strike fear into felons

Peter Bleakney
SPECIAL TO THE STAR
May 6, 2012

The final Ford Crown Victoria rolled off the assembly line in St. Thomas, Ont on Sept. 15, 2011. While the loss of this antediluvian rear drive sedan was of little concern to car buyers below, er, a certain age, it was a blow to law enforcement agencies across North America.

The Vic was the perfect tool for the job: good outward visibility, cheap to buy, hard to break, easy to fix and it had lots of grunt from its 250 hp, 297 lb-ft SOHC 4.6L V8 engine. Okay, so the Crown Vic isn't universally loved by the guys and gals who drive it. After speaking with a few Toronto police officers, I heard complaints of evil handling in the wet and cramped front quarters.

It's a given police forces will be driving these old warhorses 'til the wheels fall off, but eventually the untold thousands of Vics will make it to that big Tim Horton's in the sky.

So what will be the next iconic cop car to be seen cruisin' the highways and lurking beneath overpasses?

Ford hopes to carry on where it left off with the 2013 Police Interceptor. Built in Chicago, the Interceptor is a purpose-built Taurus sedan kitted out for enforcement duty, and unlike its V8 body-on-frame rear-drive progenitor, this is a modern unibody vehicle. The base Interceptor comes in either front-wheel-drive or all-wheel-drive and carries a 288 hp, 250 lb-ft 3.5L Ti-VCT V6.

Felons will be particularly worried by the AWD twin-turbocharged direct-injection 3.5L V6 EcoBoost model making 365 hp and 350 lb.-ft of torque.

To quote Bill Gubing, chief engineer for the Police Interceptors: "EcoBoost powertrain performance is optimized for closing speed and maximizing takedowns, thus preventing high-speed pursuits from even forming."

For the first time, Ford is also offering a "Utility" Interceptor in the form of a toughened Explorer powered by a 300 hp 3.7L Ti-VCT V6.

Having recently spent some time (in the driver's seat, thank you) in the new 370 hp Dodge Charger Hemi Enforcer, I was very curious to experience Ford's offering.

Like the Dodge, this Ford is fitted with a column shifter that frees up the console for the computer, coffee cups and other brick-a-brack. The sedan benefits from heavy-duty suspension, extra cooling capacity and brakes with 60 per cent larger swept area.

Ford set up a closed handling course at Ontario Place, and there I got to sample the AWD 288 hp Interceptor — a configuration accounting for most of the orders. Dynamically it's in another world from the Crown Vic. It felt agile, predictable and reasonably neutral, with strong brakes and a nice linear power delivery from the V6. The six-speed auto shifted smoothly and for the most part stayed in the right gear over this aggressive run.

While the Dodge Hemi Enforcer has a wicked exhaust note and it can perform spectacular tail-out antics (like all good movie cop cars should), the Ford Interceptor EcoBoost is faster, and its speed and power are easier to exploit.

But don't take my word for it. This comes from the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department's yearly comprehensive shakedown of police vehicles where they are subjected to a barrage of tests that include braking, acceleration, and handling on a high speed course and a tight "pursuit" course. The Interceptor faced its major rivals, the Dodge Charger V6 and V8, and the Chevy Caprice PPV (a rear-drive Australian Holden sedan) V6 and V8. It bested them in almost every category. Criticisms included compromised outward visibility along with ingress and egress issues due to smaller door openings.

Ford isn't giving out Interceptor pricing, but they say it is very close to the Crown Vic – this will be crucial.

Safety is improved thanks to its modern crash structure and full complement of airbags. Ford is also pushing the fuel economy benefits of this newbie. The base Interceptor is 25 per cent more fuel efficient than the old Vic, and while idling (which a city cop car will do for more than half of a ten-hour shift) Ford claims a 35 per cent improvement.

Certainly good news for us taxpayers. Although repairing the front-wheel-drive Interceptor when Officer Bob jumps a curb at 40 km/h might be a different story.

So what black-wheeled sedan will we be looking out for in the future? The Ford Interceptor appears to be the critical favourite, although repair costs could be an issue. The Brampton-built Dodge Charger Enforcer, while not as slick, has the classic rear drive platform that enforcement agencies favour. Being an Aussie transplant, the rear-drive Chevy Caprice PPV is an unknown entity, and it is saddled with a console mounted floor shifter.

It's anybody's guess. But one thing is for sure. Like a cockroach, the Crown Vic is hard to kill. And with the Toronto Police Service buying that last 300 to roll off the assembly line, it will be many years before the last Vic fishtails into oblivion.

Video: 2013 Ford Police Interceptor

Ford touts small engines,
higher gas mileage

Car company's about face part of
industry's race to hike efficiency

By Jerry Hirsch
Los Angeles Times
May 5, 2012

In a once-unthinkable turnabout, Ford Motor Co. is bragging about how it now makes some of the smallest car engines in the industry — a sign of evolution for a company that once made its money selling powerful trucks, SUVs and the Mustang muscle car.

Ford's race to smaller engines represents a trend in the industry as all automakers woo fuel-conscious consumers and work to meet increasingly stringent fuel-economy standards, said Jesse Toprak, an analyst at TrueCar, an auto price information company.

"We believe that we are going to pay more for energy going forward and that fuel efficiency is the top reason to buy. That is going on all around the world now," said Alan Mulally, Ford's chief executive.

Mulally said that Ford's strategy of making powerful but smaller engines is part of the automaker's goal to "increase the fuel efficiency every year forever."

Ford has focused on small, turbocharged engines, which it calls its EcoBoost line. Although Ford vehicles with these engines carry a premium over standard models, they have among the quickest paybacks from gas savings in the industry, Toprak said.

A recent TrueCar analysis of the latest industry offerings of small but powerful engines — with and without turbochargers — found that the Mazda3 with the SkyActiv engine and transmission was the best economic proposition. The Mazda engine features a high compression ratio and avoids the added expense of a turbocharger.

Chevrolet's tiny Sonic with the EcoTec engine had the second-quickest payback.

Ford excelled at building big vehicles with small engines. Its Edge sport utility vehicle with the EcoBoost four-cylinder engine was third, and its big F-150 pickup truck with a six-cylinder EcoBoost engine was fifth.

The small Kia Forte sedan was fourth in the TrueCar analysis.

Ford is now marketing that with new introductions later this year, it will have seven vehicles with the smallest engines in their respective segments.

They include the 1.6-liter four-cylinder engines going into the new Escape crossover and Fusion family car, the 2-liter four-cylinder that's already in the Edge SUV, its bigger Explorer sibling and the Taurus large sedan and a 3.5-liter V-6 it is placing in police Interceptors and F-150 pickup.

CAW Contact
May 4, 2012
Volume 42, No. 17

Ontario Northland Target Premier McGuinty's Office

Demonstrators rallied outside Premier Dalton McGuinty's Ottawa constituency office on April 27.
 

Two Ontario Northland Motor Coaches with concerned Northerners on board traveled to Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty's constituency office in Ottawa on April 27 to tell him Ontario Northland is not for sale. The General Chairperson's Association (GCA) representing all unionized employees at Ontario Northland chartered the buses.
 
"As the Premier has so far refused to meet with anyone from the North on this important issue, we thought we would save him the trip and travel to his home town to voice our displeasure with his government's ill-advised decision to sell off Ontario Northland," said GCA spokesperson Brian Kelly.
 
"We had requested a meeting for today with the Premier but instead of meeting with the Premier we were told that we could only meet with his assistant.  As is his usual response to Northern issues Mr. McGuinty simply is too busy to meet with Northerners," said Kelly.
 
"From the lumber industry to the closing of the Kidd Creek smelter in Timmins and now the selloff of Ontario Northland the Premier's disdain for the North can no longer be ignored," Kelly said.
 
"We call upon Ontario NDP leader Andrea Horwath to hold this government to account and ensure that Northern issues are no longer treated with total disregard by the McGuinty government," concluded Kelly, who is also president of CAW Local 103, which represents approximately 450 Ontario Northland workers.

 CAW Takes Auto Policy Pitch to Ontario Minister Duguid

Approximately 150 CAW members, family, politicians and community allies crowded into the CAW Local 27 hall on May 1 for the final auto community town hall meeting.  In all, there were eight meetings across southern Ontario spanning three weeks.

CAW President Ken Lewenza and CAW Economist Jim Stanford met with Ontario Minister of Economic Development and Innovation Brad Duguid to present the union's proposals on strengthening the province's auto industry. 
 
The pair was joined by GM Master Bargaining Committee Chair and CAW Local 222 President Chris Buckley, Ford Master Bargaining Committee Chair and CAW Local 707 President Gary Beck and CAW Pensions and Benefits Director Jo-Ann Hannah.
 
The April 30 session was the first meeting with government officials since the launch of the CAW's Re-think the Economy, Re-think Canada's Auto Industry campaign on April 16.  Other meetings are currently being scheduled.
 
Lewenza described the meeting as constructive and positive, with the presentation being well-received by government officials. Lewenza said that the union plans to take the proposals to all federal and provincial party auto caucuses.
 
The campaign policy proposals include developing a transparent and consistent auto investment policy, building a green industry, negotiating Canadian manufacturing footprint commitments, in addition to a number of other measures. See the entire list of proposals at: http://www.rethinktheeconomy.ca/resources.
 
For more information on the Re-think the Economy campaign or for an outline of the CAW's proposals, please visit Here.

CAW Local 222 Family Auxiliary Celebrates 75th Anniversary

CAW Family Auxiliary #27 celebrated its 75th anniversary at CAW Local 222 hall on April 21. Pictured are CAW President Ken Lewenza; Jackie Finn, CAW Family Auxiliary #27 President and CAW Director of Women's Programs Julie White.
 

CAW President Condemns Changes to TFWP
 
Changes to the temporary foreign worker regulations will only increase abuse and lower conditions for migrant workers, CAW President Ken Lewenza says.
 
Lewenza was responding to a change in regulations which now allow employers to fast track bringing in skilled temporary foreign workers and paying them up to 15 per cent less than the prevailing wage, effectively paying foreign workers less than Canadian counterparts.
 
"This government-endorsed, employer-driven program is already rife with exploitation," said Lewenza. "In its current form, there are few checks and balances in the program, leaving workers with little protection and few avenues to enforce rights afforded to Canadian workers."
 
Lewenza voiced outrage that changes made by federal Human Resources Minister Diane Finley will only serve to lower conditions for workers right across the board. Under the new rules, employer requests for importing highly skilled workers will be responded to within 10 days, as opposed to the current 12-14 weeks required for a Labour Market Opinion. And the government has indicated that while these changes only apply to highly skilled occupations, it could soon expand to other classifications.
 
The CAW already has temporary foreign workers in some of the workplaces the union represents, including some fish processing plants, resorts and aerospace firms and is familiar with the complex set of problems the program creates, said Lewenza.
 
"The federal government has allowed the corporate agenda to dictate the terms and conditions of our immigration system. This is not the model of fairness that Canadians support," said Lewenza
 
"With more than 1.5 million unemployed Canadians, there is no labour shortage in this country.

Suggesting that Canada has a labour shortage and that these changes are necessary is dishonest and deceitful."
 
As a nation, Canada has a dark history of bringing workers into the country to toil in terrible conditions for paltry wages, said Lewenza. "No government of any political stripe should ever attempt to turn back the clock."

Women's Rights Are Not Up for Debate: Open Letter

The following are excerpts from an Open Letter by the CAW on Women's Rights
 
"Women's rights are not up for debate - in the House of Commons or anywhere else in Canada.

Yet the federal Conservative government seems to think they are.
 
The issue of a woman's legal right to safe and accessible abortion services was settled by the Supreme Court in 1988. The only question that still remains is whether women across Canada have the ability to exercise this right. Even today, women in rural settings still do not have adequate access to services - a situation that must be addressed.

Women and men alike watched in disgust as Conservative MP Stephen Woodworth's motion, supported by a number of his colleagues, called into question the ability of women to make choices over their own bodies. M-312 proposes the creation of a Parliamentary Committee to examine whether the Criminal Code definition of "human being" should be expanded to include fetuses. In effect, the motion opens the door for the criminalization of abortion and the revival of the long concluded debate over women's reproductive rights and autonomy over their own bodies.

Time and time again, Prime Minister Stephen Harper has pledged that the Conservative party would not reopen the abortion debate...

The CAW stands with the Abortion Rights Coalition of Canada and the YWCA's call to uphold women's legal right to abortion and prevent the infringement on women's Charter rights. We will continue to work alongside women's and other progressive organizations across our country to defend women's reproductive and legal rights in the weeks and months ahead.
 
Stephen Harper, women's reproductive rights are not up for debate. Live up to your word."
 
Here is the link to the full letter: http://www.caw.ca/en/11156.htm
 
Take action now!
 
Sign the petition opposing M-312 HERE

Download and send a postcard to tell your MP that your choice is pro-choice

Planning for Your Future in Winnipeg

"On April 21, a one day Planning For Your Future Area School was held at the Winnipeg Regional Office, instructed by discussion leader and CAW Local 468 President Mark Armstrong.
 
The course was very well received by participants who were encouraged and thankful for the wealth of information provided.
 
This seminar-based course featured several guest speakers including representatives from Service Canada, the Financial Assiniboine Credit Union, and Myers Weinberg LLP. CAW retired member John Marlow was in attendance to assist and deliver a presentation which shared insight about being "retired from the job but not the fight."  CAW retired member Jack Morrison was also in attendance to observe and add some tips on how to keep active in the union as a retired member.

Evraz Serves 72-Hour Lockout Notice to Alberta Workers 

New Pay Equity Training Program

Participants in the CAW's new Pay Equity Training Program gather at the CAW Family Education Centre in Port Elgin, Ontario

No matter how you look at it, women still earn less than men in every sector of the economy and Ontario is no exception.
 
Ontario has one of the highest gender pay gaps in the world - for every $1 earned by men, women earn 71 cents. And we know without enforceable laws or the CAW's work at the bargaining table, employers will continue to pay workers as little as possible - and history tells us that if they can get away with paying women less, they will.
 
As the CAW continues to negotiate improved wages and benefits for all members, it recognizes that wage inequities between men and women still exist. The new pay equity program was designed to assist CAW bargaining committees to develop the skills, tools and confidence to work to close the wage gap between men and women who work in different jobs but have similar skills.
 
To that end, the CAW Education Department, working with the Women's Department, developed a new four day Ontario Pay Equity Training Program that was launched on April 22-25 in Port Elgin at the CAW Family Education Centre.
 
Through a variety of exercises, including a mock pay equity session, participants were able to identify ways to end discriminatory pay affects and ensure that their employers are meeting their obligations under the law.
 
"In the last 25 years the wage gap has closed by only 7 per cent through the Pay Equity process," said Theresa Farao, President of CAW Local 240. "This course is a good step forward to ensure and correct the inequities between men and women wages in our workplaces."

To download a copy of this  letter please visit Here

When should workers
take a pension buyout?

By Mark Miller

May 4, 2012

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Ford Motor Company is making an offer it hopes 90,000 former employees can't refuse: a lump sum buyout of their pensions.

The auto giant plans to offer a voluntary buyout of defined benefit pensions to salaried retirees and former employees, with payouts to start later this year.

Although Ford hasn't revealed the exact terms of the payments, the scale of the offer is unprecedented for a corporation that isn't actually terminating a pension plan. Ford hopes the strategy will reduce its pension liabilities and balance sheet volatility. If successful, Ford could be starting a trend that other companies follow.

Is a lump sum offer a good deal for Ford's pension beneficiaries? How about workers at other companies, many of whom are offered lump sum options at retirement in lieu of a lifetime income stream from a pension?

I posed the question to one of the top experts in North America on pensions, retirement and annuities - Moshe A. Milevsky. He's a finance professor at the Schulich School of Business at York University in Toronto and CEO of QWeMA Group, which licenses intellectual property and algorithms used in retirement calculators. His latest book, "The Seven Most Important Equations for Your Retirement and the Stories Behind Them" (John Wiley & Sons), was published this week.

Milevsky cautions that there's no one-size-fits all answer.

"But my default position is not to take the lump sum and I therefore have to be convinced to give up the pension annuity. Not the other way around," he says.

"In most cases, the lump sum won't compensate for loss of the pension, unless you're in poor health and don't expect to live very long."

In deciding whether a lump sum is a good deal, Milevsky advises retirees to consider three key factors:

Mortality. "How healthy do you think you are in relation to the rest of the population? If you have reason to think you'll live longer than average, the pension probably beats a lump sum."

Interest rates. The lump sum is a good deal only if you are very certain you can beat the rate of return (referred to by the numbers folks as the "discount rate") that your pension plan is using to calculate what your pension is worth as a lump sum.

"We're in a very low rate environment, so that makes the pension worth more," says Milevsky.

By law, the lump sum calculation is pegged to yields on corporate bonds. The rates vary depending on your age and are adjusted monthly by the Internal Revenue Service. The published rate for March for a 65-year-old is about 4.25 percent, according to Ellen Kleinstuber, a principal with Savitz Organization, an actuarial consulting firm. For that retiree, the choice would be between receiving $700 per month lifetime, or approximately $108,000 as a lump sum.

That means, in order to come out ahead, you'd need to be able to beat that 4.25 percent rate investing the lump sum. That's impossible to do if the money is invested in risk-free investments, such as certificates of deposit. You could choose to assume a higher rate of return from investing in equities, but the risk must be factored in, Milevsky cautions.

The amount you're getting. "How much is your employer actually proposing to give you? If it's a trivial sum, take the lump sum," Milevsky says. "If it's a large amount, you need to run the numbers."

Lump sums have two other potential pitfalls.

The actuarial tables that govern lump sum calculations are unisex. That's bad news for women, since they outlive men, on average, by about four years. That means female workers who take lump sums get shortchanged compared to male workers.

You also may get shortchanged on the value of any early-retirement pension sweeteners your employer might offer for early retirement, because they generally aren't included in lump sum calculations (a consideration that doesn't apply to Ford, since all the workers involved are retired or former employees.)

Although Milevsky leans in most cases toward keeping the pension, he notes that there are a couple downsides to pension annuity streams, too. First, private sector pensions aren't adjusted for inflation, so the value of the income streams erodes over time.

Safety is another concern. In the event that your employer goes belly up and the plan defaults on its obligations, the government-sponsored Pension Benefit Guarantee Corporation (PBGC) steps in to take over and continue making payments. But highly-paid workers could be in line for benefits that exceed the PBGC's insurance protection levels. The payout rates available from the PBGC are based on your age at the time the plan is terminated and are updated annually (here). For 2012, the maximum monthly benefit for workers retiring at age 65 is $4,653.41, or $4,188.07 if you elect a joint and survivor option that pays benefits to a spouse.

Milevsky's book contains formulas for figuring this out - but he urges retirees at Ford and elsewhere to get a professional financial planner to run the numbers, given the magnitude of the decision and the complex factors involved.

"You need someone who can work it through on a spreadsheet," he says. My view: your best bet is a fee-only planner, since planners compensated on a percentage of your portfolio have a built-in vested interest in a lump sum decision.

As a researcher, Milevsky also hopes someone will study the decisions made by Ford workers, given the unprecedented size of the group facing the lump-or-not decision.

"I hope someone keeps careful data on who chooses what," he says. "It will be a gold mine for researchers on human behavior and behavioral finance."

He adds that it's a shame workers aren't given a choice to take a portion of their benefit as a lump-sum and a portion as a pension annuity.

"All-or-nothing decisions are always harmful relative to the ability to diversify," he says.

Milevsky could get his wish soon; the U.S. Treasury has proposed a rule changes that would make it easier for plan sponsors to offer that kind of flexibility as part of a broader set of policies aimed at expanding lifetime income choices available to retiring workers.

Ford will open $450M
Thailand plant

2nd facility in nation part of automaker's global expansion plan

By David Shepardson

Detroit News Washington Bureau
May 3, 2012

Ford Motor Co. today planned to mark the opening of a $450 million auto plant in Thailand, part of its strategy to boost sales in Asia.

The 215,000-square-foot plant is Ford's second plant in Thailand, and one of eight new manufacturing facilities Ford will open by 2015 across the Asia Pacific and Africa region as part of its global expansion.

Next month, the Dearborn automaker will launch production of the new Ford Focus at the Thai plant; it's already being built at five other Ford facilities around the world.

"The opening of this new, world-class facility is the latest example in our aggressive growth plan for this region, which represents Ford's largest industrial expansion in half-a-century," said Joe Hinrichs, president of Ford Asia Pacific and Africa.

The vehicles are "part of our plan to launch 50 new vehicles and powertrains in Asia Pacific and Africa by mid-decade," he said.

Along with China and India, Thailand serves as one of the key global production and export hubs for Ford.

Ford Thailand Manufacturing has an initial production capacity of 150,000 vehicles; the plant increases the company's annual capacity in Thailand to 445,000. That makes Ford one of the largest producers and exporters of vehicles in the country.

In a telephone interview from Thailand, Hinrichs said the new plant will initially have capacity for 150,000 vehicles a year but could eventually expand to about 300,000, and that Ford is considering adding new products.

Ford predicts that in the Asia-Africa region, auto sales will double by the end of the decade.

"There's a lot of growth still to come," Hinrichs said.

Since 2007, Ford has invested more than $1.5 billion in Thailand.

Overall, Ford is the second-largest automotive investor in the country, with cumulative investments totaling more than $2.5 billion.

The facility has the potential to support up to 11,000 new jobs, including 2,200 direct jobs with Ford and 8,800 indirect jobs through its supplier and dealer networks. There are already 1,600 workers on-site, preparing for production launch.

Rebecca Lindland, an automotive analyst at IHS Automotive, said Thailand is a very manufacturing-friendly place.

"The reality is Asia is where the new volume is going to be. It's one of the few markets that has enormous potential," Lindland said.

Ford plans to buy up to $800 million worth of components locally through Thailand's automotive manufacturing supplier network