DSenstad

So essentially you are hit with taxes twice, once as a deduction and once as actual taxes.... Man, that bunk.

They learned quick with the MKZ, lets hope they see that they need a difference with the Nav.

I agree that the problem with Jag was the decision to male it an everyday working mans car. They should cut the bootom and stretch Jag upward using the R&D from those models to trickle down thereby making room for the upper end for Lincoln and Volvo's.

I believe that some of the diesel issues will be cleaned up this fall by the new fuel requirements, and I think the new 6.4 will meet the reg's. I don't see how a smaller motor can't be made to meet the regs as well. Going back to GEN, check the previous contracts for GIS, and before that going way back you will find similair language although I don't remember the initial programs name. I don't think it was a HUGE concession but it was one that should have kept a product in the US instead of paying the foriegn product and penalty... eliminate the penalty by building it here. If you read the contract you will see language for moving a product, thus they could build in the lower 48 like the other manufactuares that you listed. Looking at the awards won by some of the plants being shutdown, it might have been one of the best moves Ford could have made, but they didn't which leads me back to the original topic. Ford is intentionally shooting themselves in the foot and we pay the price. I don't know what the end game is, but it could have been played differently and as profitable if not more so along with setting the company up well for the future. No, Ford has something else in mind but I can't see it yet, I just hope I'm not really disappointed by their "bold moves".

One more uninformed, unintelligent, idiot that lacks the necessary skills to ask questions. They simply read something, think they know the rest of the story and say the first thing that pops into their heads. It is a shame they are not illiterate mutes. I believe that the 4th option is actually 50 years of age and ten years of service when dealing with a plant closing according to the contract. I wonder how this will play out across the Ford system as they are trying to make room for those who are being displaced by the plant closings. I would hope the UAW would look at this with Ford instead of simply bobbing their heads as I accuse them of doing so often. Mark Feilds.... very very good

It is a shame that there is so little that seperates the Expedition form the rebadged Lincoln. For the money they really should be able to make some really visable changes.

It is obvious to me that people are so brain washed that they still can't see the initial question asked even after it was pointed out. Let us trey again, and I will type slower this time. FORD made an agreement to guarantee employment numbers. FORD built a product elsewhere while knowing they would be paying others here to sit. People are beating up Ford and the UAW for GEN. Whether it is the Fusion, the Focus, or a future product is irrelevant. Whether it is Mexico, Brazil, or Thailand is irrelevant. The point is FORD intentionally made a choice that would cost them extra money. The Second part of the post has to do with the fact that Ford is letting a segment die. They can not cry about the cost or R&D on a new Ranger when all they have to do is look to Brazil, Thailand, or Australia for working models of a Ranger. They can look at all of the engineering from when the F-series was redone for an exceptional product, they could look at England for a 2.5 liter diesel engine that people have been clamoring for but they are killing it intentionally... losing money once again on purpose. Was that slow enough?

The Edge isn't a true SUV and as the poster said that segment is lessening. The Edge is the segment that those people have moved into and Ford needed a player in that market, it is an intelligent move.

The single biggest complaint I have about Ford.... OK, one of the biggest complaints I have about Ford is everytime I change from my truck to my wives, to my kids cars I have to hunt for the lights and pray it doesn't rain. Why can't they make that consistent? I bet it would reduce cost.

Launching and then hoping for a home run. Man it makes me sick too see the way they let so many vehicles die on the vine.

Rumor from a company person today was that TCAP would not be going to 1 shift as early as planned. It was actually distributed in a bulletin last week as 12-6 or there about but I heard it has once again changed.

Laptop, coffee pot, reading light, etc.

Now how will this play out if we go to a company wide senority list? When I was first hired at Ford I thought it was a system wide senority list because it was explained to me by someone in local 600 where they can transfer when they are layed off.... sort of a senority list I guess. I was fine then knowing I might get bumped which wasn't really the way it was set up and I would be fine now that I'm halfway through knowing that I might be the ping-pong ball or the paddle... or both.

I would agree with that however we might have a difference in our communications. Often the cord connected to a valve or cylinder is refered to as a prox cord as well. Some Electricians in our building consider them to be anti-vibration plug ins and think nothing more of us unplugging them and plugging them back in when we change a valve than they think of us plugging in our own laptops and others say if electricity flows through it than it is electricians work. This is where the lines get blurred.

I would guess there will be a little gamesmanship being played. I also think you have to be intelligent enought to realize you are making the decision for your life, no one elses. Listen to advice but make your own decision.

I could post what a Pipefitter in Minnesota is required to know/do on a job as well but the reality of the situation is they have several fitters that specialize in the construction although we all have to learn it, including pipewelding. They have several that specialize in Amonnia refridgeration which is a total different animal than our normal A/C but is 50% of our Steamfitters State Test. They have several pipefitters that specialize in maintenance and controls which is closer to what we do with a little extra controls. I would imagine that no matter how they combine the trades you would find that each person would NOT be expected to do all of the work but it would still be broken up. All it would eliminate are some of the small annoying lines of demarcation such as who unplugs a proxcord.

$9 an hour in mexico plus $28 an hour of the person in GEN. You can throw in all the benifits of the GEN person as well. One of my points is that they made that decision knowing they would be paying the person in GEN going into it, that cost had to be factors, or it should. How much is that tarriff? It better be awfully high to cover the GEN person.

Reality Bites... and I think what you just said is the reality.

Ford knew that the contract stated they would have to put people in GEN if they built the fusion in Mexico. They spent billions of dollars investing in the plant so they didn't save in that regards. They are paying the wages down there, the transportaion costs, and the people sitting in GEN so they didn't save there and yet the media and investors are up in arms about GEN? Didn't Ford read the contract before they made that... Bold Move? I think they did. There is a picture of a Ranger with a diesel on another thread on this board. Ford has done the R&D, they have the product and now are giving away the market... Why? Ford is doing this and more to themselves on purpose and we are paying the price.

FOrget the off road only... it should have been on the road here years ago. Ford put themselves in this position on purpose.

Why wouldn't the top people at product development leave? Everyone wants to feel like they are working towards something and everything coming down the pipeline keeps getting cut. Ford really does need to do a far better job of communicating with the people during this downsizing or they will continue to lose people. Do the idiots that write for the papers really think this is news worthy?

Just a thought, but with technology today, why do they have to travel at all? Can't they do conference calls, Internet assemblys? it seems to me that the purpose of this meeting is simply to exchange information, I really doubt we will know anything before September 12th, 14th, 18th whatever. Ford has town hall meetings over the TV, I would think the UAW could do it over the Internet.

There is a golf tournament for Ford, I don't think they will be around to deceminate any information for the union leaders to bring back to us. We will find out on 9-14 when Bill turns the mike over to Mark Feilds.

I can't really see how his rants are related to the buy outs.

So we are unloading a semi of e-coat this morning and I mention to him that the Presidents and Building Chairs are meeting in Detroit for some communications tomorrow. Then he tells me that his company is holding a gold tournament for Ford and the UAW in Detroit tomorrow... How much you wanna bet that when all ther locl officials come back we won't know much of anything more than we do already.