iluvnascar

I just watched the video link posted on this site re the 2020 Escape - disturbing to hear that the 2020 Escape is 2" wider; and 4" wider when considering the exterior mirrors! That means it will not fit through the garage door of the condos that my two kids have. Even their present Escape (2018) leaves minimal margin for error (or carelessness)! Is the 4" quoted in the video accurate?

Do you have any info on the "Partial" 3rd shift. Exactly what does a "Partial" 3rd shift mean? Would it be Body Shop adding a 3rd shift? or something else? And when (best guess) would you expect it to happen???

Can anyone give me the phone number for Payroll in Oakville (likely located at Central Office Building)?

Believe it or not.....I did Google it......but never found the link you provided. Thank You! Now if I can just find Canadian sales.......and U.S. production numbers..............

I'm looking for sales numbers for 2007, 2008, and 2009 for Hyundai and Kia. I'd like Canada as well as U.S........and I'd also like to know how many vehicles were assembled in the US for each of those years. Any ideas as to where to find the numbers would be much appreciated!

What's wrong with a 3-day weekend every week? Looks like a great idea. And as 2011 approaches, an extra day/week to go job-hunting.

I totally agree. There are a lot of smart politicians out there.....and so I'm sure they know what's happening.....but I think they have absolutely no idea how to turn it around. The signs are everywhere....high unemployment, plant closures, low consumer confidence, lousy retail sales (reflecting lack of confidence)......and perhaps most indicatively, a rapidly growing wage gap between private sector (outsourcing, concessions, closures, etc) and the public sector (no competition, weak-kneed politicians, unlimited revenue - a.k.a. taxes, unfair bargaining power by holding consumers hostage and taking advantage of monopolistic conditions). According to a detailed study of 2006 census results, the average public sector job now pays 30% more than the comparable private sector job.....and the gap is growing. If you want a high-paying job with a pension and job security.....you gotta work for the Government....ANY Government!

Not that I'm a real Jack Layton fan.....he really has his head on a little straighter than most of the politicos that offer a lot of words that never say anything. Believe it or not, the Plant can be saved.....but not as a Ford plant. There are other ways that this could (should) be handled....but it's essentially out of Ford's hands and in the hands of Government. The only question is whether or not Government wants to continue to see manufacturing decimated in Ontario. So far, the answer is yes.

The goverment has carried out the plan of the WTO in having 2 classes of working stiffs the min wage earner and the dirty rotten rich white collar. We actually have three classes now......the average Joe who toils for $10-$15 per hour as jobs at Walmart, Home Depot, and similar chain stores grow through reliance on imports from China; the dirty rotten rich white collar executives and Wall Street aces; and Government workers who have no competition; no outsourcing; no downsizing; increasing demand for services; and spineless Governments willing to pay usurious levels of wages and benfits by taxing the hell out of Joe & Jane Average Worker.

It's unfortunate that so many here choose to badmouth rogerbrian who is just telling it like it is. Over the next decade, plants will continue to close regardless of wage concessions. Unfortunately, workers could accept zero and the auto companies would still be forced to move production overseas and/or enter joint ventures with Korean/Indian/Chinese companies. It's a matter of survival for the shareholders because that's the way capitalism works. The US is a consumer-based economy (unfortunately) and price rules. Everything needs to get cheaper and cheaper because that's what the politicians tell the people that they want. By 2011, Ford will have only one assembly plant in Canada.....yet through just nine months of 2009, Hyundai Canada and its 39% owned subsidiary, Kia, have sold 119,048 vehicles.......none of which were assembled in Canada. That's an annualized level of 159 thousand vehicles.....which equates to a full year of 40 units per hour on two shifts at a plant like St. Thomas. Hyundai and Kia also sold 580,787 units in the US through September.......an annualized rate of 774 thousand vehicles in what is universally recognized as a terrible sales year! (Note: Hyundai has one U.S. assembly plant). Hyundai/Kia is just one of the companies that is shipping into the North American market and displacing North American jobs. And the politicians couldn't care less. Chinese vehicles will be coming to North America in the next few years; and cars from India - econoboxes - will arrive before the Chinese vehicles. And don't forget Mexico which keeps building more and more vehicles for the US and Canada. I hate it..........bu that's the way it is and it will get worse. The only thing that wage concessions and contract modifications do is slow down the process........but that's very important if you are a middle-aged worker hoping to earn a full pension.

St. Thomas has been dead meat for the last three years. The only question was when. There is no product to put at the plant...............in such a dire situation, the Company and the UNion have done the best job that anyone could reasonably expect. If you want something else at the plant, it will have to be one of those offshore companies that simp,y ships into Canada and adds nothing to the local economy........like Hyundai/Kia. Start calling your MP's and MPP's. Those guys are totally flat on their ass and have done NOTHING to improve the lot of the manufacturing indutstry in canada. They all ought to work at Walmart for a month and see what their efforts have accomplished.

If you hear of a way to hide the STEP, I'd love to hear about it. I know that the pension can be transferred to a special locked-in Self-Directed RSP (or left with Ford). But the $130,000 (including the car voucher) is exposed except for the amount that can be transferred to an RRSP. But if you have been contributing to your RRSP on a regular basis, you may not be able to transfer anything significant. And if you get the money in late 2011, you will be in a high tax bracket and the marginal tax will likely be in the 45% range. Ken Lewenza should have negotiated payment of severance in 2012 (at the employee's option). that would save a whole lot of tax. Meanwhile, our politcos could solve the problem but they won't...they don't give a hoot about auto workers.

I'm glad that the employees will still receive their earned pension credits.....I was concerned that the STEP payment would include any and all financial obligations of Ford including the accrued pension. With reference to pension safety, it seems to me that by the time it happens in two years, the Government will have some knind of pension protection in place. If not.....you may be right that it might be best to transfer it to a locked-in self-administered RRSP.....although not everyone is equipped to manage such an important piece of cash

Re the STEP (Special Termination of Employment) applicable to those who are NOT retirement eligible and who have 8 or more years of service.... I understand that there is a cash payment and a vehicle voucher......but will such employees also receive the accrued value of their Ford Pension Plan and be able to transfer it to a special Locked-In RRSP?

It's not surprising that St. Thomas is closing....after all, there is no product for the plant after the death of the CV/GM line. But where is the effort to find SOMETHING for the Plant to keep people working and the economy moving? Through just nine months of 2009, Hyundai Canada and its 39% owned subsidiary, Kia, have sold 119,048 vehicles.......none of which were assembled in Canada. That's an annualized level of 159 thousand vehicles.....which equates to a full year of 40 units per hour on two shifts at a plant like St. Thomas. Hyundai and Kia also sold 580,787 units in the US through September.......an annualized rate of 774 thousand vehicles in what is universally recognized as a terrible sales year! These numbers will undoubtedly go much higher as market conditions improve. (Note: Hyundai has one U.S. assembly plant). If we are, indeed, intent on maintaining employment for the St. Thomas crew and helping the local (and national) economy, our political leaders (if any of them is interested?) need to speak frankly with Hyundai/Kia management and encourage them to strike a deal with Ford and take over the Ford St. Thomas Plant. Ford is a responsible employer and I am sure that they would want to minimize the impact of any closure........and what better way to do that than to keep the Plant operating with a new owner? Armed with a competitive labour agreement courtesy of the CAW and the affected employees; and with $1.0-$1.5 Billion in forgiveable interest-free loans, I believe the Hyundai/Kia could be brought on board. Admittedly, $1.5 Billion is a lot of money but it's far less than Canada handed to Chrysler and GM; and it's far less than we will wind up paying in EI benefits, welfare payments, bankruptcy filings, and incalculable social and economic collateral damage. But alas....there isn't one politician out there who is interested in actually doing something proactive. So down the drain goes 1600 jobs and another 12-15000 spinoff jobs. Tragic is too simple a word to describe the end result.

It's not surprising that St. Thomas is closing....after all, there is no product for the plant after the death of the CV/GM line. But where is the effort to find SOMETHING for the Plant to keep people working and the economy moving? Through just nine months of 2009, Hyundai Canada and its 39% owned subsidiary, Kia, have sold 119,048 vehicles.......none of which were assembled in Canada. That's an annualized level of 159 thousand vehicles.....which equates to a full year of 40 units per hour on two shifts at a plant like St. Thomas. Hyundai and Kia also sold 580,787 units in the US through September.......an annualized rate of 774 thousand vehicles in what is universally recognized as a terrible sales year! These numbers will undoubtedly go much higher as market conditions improve. (Note: Hyundai has one U.S. assembly plant). If we are, indeed, intent on maintaining employment for the St. Thomas crew and helping the local (and national) economy, our political leaders (if any of them is interested?) need to speak frankly with Hyundai/Kia management and encourage them to strike a deal with Ford and take over the Ford St. Thomas Plant. Ford is a responsible employer and I am sure that they would want to minimize the impact of any closure........and what better way to do that than to keep the Plant operating with a new owner? Armed with a competitive labour agreement courtesy of the CAW and the affected employees; and with $1.0-$1.5 Billion in forgiveable interest-free loans, I believe the Hyundai/Kia could be brought on board. Admittedly, $1.5 Billion is a lot of money but it's far less than Canada handed to Chrysler and GM; and it's far less than we will wind up paying in EI benefits, welfare payments, bankruptcy filings, and incalculable social and economic collateral damage. But alas....there isn't one politician out there who is interested in actually doing something proactive. So down the drain goes 1600 jobs and another 12-15000 spinoff jobs. Tragic is too simple a word to describe the end result.

Ford has announced the building of a new plant in China (its 3rd plant there) to build the next generation Focus. (I may be wrong.....but does Wayne now build the Focus.....and is that where the new Fiesta will be built?) Either way, it's evident that the North American auto industry will continue in decline until all manufacturing is outsourced to China, Brazil, Korea, India, and/or Mexico. Our beef is not really with Ford - they are doing what they need to do to survive. Our beef is with the politicians who think this is a smart move.....get rid of all those dirty manufacturing jobs and bring in lots of "new" jobs in "green" areas of the economy. What are they smoking....it isn't going to happen.

Check out this article in the National Post (Aug 17th): http://www.financialpost.com/news-sectors/story.html?id=1902460 Lengthy death watch for Ford's Ontario factory Nicolas Van Praet, Financial Post Published: Monday, August 17, 2009 It has been a lengthy death watch for Ford Motor Co.'s assembly factory in St. Thomas, Ont. The plant has been on the bubble for more than three years, with little new investment and little confidence on the part of some analysts that Ford will ever build any new cars there beyond its aging rear-wheel-drive police cruisers and chauffeured sedans. The automaker says there is no product identified for the facility beyond 2011. If Ford closes the plant, it will be a rare down note for a company carefully crafting a comeback. But among the labour leaders with the Canadian Auto Workers union, hope has a funny way of clinging to life. The union will reopen its contract with Ford in talks that start the week of Sept.8 and discuss "various cost savings" other than base wages and pensions, according to a message from CAW leaders posted on the internet this month. The union is demanding that the automaker make a longer-term commitment to St. Thomas in exchange for concessions. And it is resurrecting long-shot bids to woo Magna International Inc. or Mazda Motor Corp. to the site for a joint venture with Ford. "We're currently pursuing any options we've got," said Scott Smith, chairperson of CAW Local 1520, which represents the St. Thomas workers. "I think Ford has a responsibility to manufacture vehicles in this country... I mean if you're going to be the top-selling [carmaker nationwide, as they have been for the last two months,] you ought to be building some of them here." St. Thomas now subsists on one shift of roughly 1,450 workers building the Ford Crown Victoria, Mercury Grand Marquis and Lincoln Town Car. They assembled 42,400 automobiles in the first half the year, 38% fewer than in the first six months of 2008. Ford's other assembly plant in Oakville, Ont. has pumped out 64,600 vehicles this year through the end of June. "The reason the St. Thomas vehicles have been able to stay alive this long is that they've basically been built on the same architecture, or platform, for several years and so they've never really required a lot of capital investment and retooling," said Haig Stoddard, a manufacturing analyst at IHS Global Insight in Lexington, Mass. "There still is demand for them to a certain extent in the police vehicle market." To maintain that demand, however, and keep the models viable, Ford would have to undertake a major redesign of the cars, Mr. Stoddard said. He said right now, it does not appear Ford will do that, preferring instead to focus on its front-wheel drive models like the Taurus and Fusion. Politics might yet play a role in this saga because jobs are at stake. CAW officials met with federal and provincial lawmakers late last month to talk about the Ford plant. Politicians with the two levels of governments have offered "commitments" to help Ford retool the factory but no specific dollar amounts have been discussed, Mr. Smith said. Revamping the plant to make new products could cost in the range of $1-billion. Ford has not asked for any government assistance, company spokeswoman Lauren More said Monday. The car maker was the only one of Detroit's three auto manufacturers to decline federal aid and the only one to avoid a bankruptcy protection filing. Ford's challenge now is to cut costs. The loonie's 7% run up against the U.S. dollar in July means making vehicles in Canada is more expensive than in the past. And a new contract signed by the CAW's sister union in the United States, which includes two-tier wages, has left the CAW labour pricier than U.S. labour for Ford. The CAW signed new labour deals with both General Motors Co. and Chrysler Group LLC earlier this summer, agreeing to several concessions to help the companies qualify for $14-billion in government aid. "If we cannot reach an agreement with Ford... then our existing contract will remain in place," the CAW said in its message to members. "We would immediately face an enormous risk of Ford shifting its future investments from Canadian plants to the U.S. and other countries." Close Presented by Get the National Post newspaper delivered

".....Ford will receive more appreciation from, and sell more new cars to the public if they do not take money from the government." ".....No. Fords sales and market share are skyrocketing because they did not take a bailout. Relax dude. The future is bright..check out the products...." Although I agree with both of these statements, I think there is a huge difference between taking money from the taxpayers to avoid bankruptcy.........versus having the Government "invest" in a new product decision destined to enhance Government revenues for years to come. Every new product/plant gets some kind of Government assitance and incentives.....the only question is who wants to pay the tab in order to earn the sourcing.

Everyone - and I mean EVERYONE - needs to start lobbying and calling his/her elected representatives and DEMAND a major incentive package for Ford (or some other automaker willing to buy the Plant and its workforce to manufacture its own product). Ford is asking for concessions to match Chrysler and GM; and Ford should also be getting Government aid similar to that given to Chrysler/GM. Otherwise, it's not a fair deal. There may be something going on behind the scenes but I doubt it. And a public show of a desire for Government aid - accompanied by a willingness to accept concessions - needs to take place. Money talks and if a large Government incentive package were made available in return for Ford's guarantee to maintain the historical Canadian production ratio, it might be enough.

I think we need to realize that we are playing in a "world market". Thanks to our politicians, free trade has allowed any and all products to enter North America from almost any country. Countries like China, Korea and Mexico manufacture products with minimal wage costs......and North American consumers buy them. They are all looking for the lowest price. "Made in Canada" or "Made in America" just doesn't cut it with most consumers. They don't care where the rpduct comes from.....they just want it cheap......and they don't understand the implications. Ford (and GM & Chrysler) are essentially being forced into moving production to low-wage economies if they want to survive. They have no choice. You can't change the laws of economics and so if we want Ford (and GM & Chrysler) to build cars in North America, we have to make it unbelievably attractive.......and that means concessions and more concessions and pension cuts and benefit cuts and Goverment incentives and low/no-interest loans and so on. The alternatives are a lower paying good job with an auto manufacturer....or likely no job at all. Our politicians haven't faced up to the fact that you can't have a successful economic model without manufacturing. They seem to think that everyone can be a Government employee or a Health Care employee (Government funded, of course) or self-employed. To hell with manufacturing......it's "old work".....bring on the "new Economy"! (Whatever that is) That's why I have volunteered (in writing) a pension cut and a benefits cut. And why I have written numerous letters to political officials asking for Government incentives for Ford to maintain the footprint in canada (i.e. St. Thomas). i want to see no-interest loans to Ford; accompanied by concessions and pension benefit cuts from the employees; with a new product being introduced; and with the loan totally forgiveable over time based upon the number of full time jobs created and maintained. We should all be prepared to sacrifice big time....whether it's justified or not. The alternative is too dire.

".........I'm guessing that you also would be willing to take a hit on benefits and a 10% drop in your pension to make this happen??..." Yes gocash......I would be more than willing to take a 10% pension hit. And a benefits hit.....and whatever it takes. Don't forget.....a 10% pension hit (like a 10% wage hit) is before tax.....in essence, the Government picks up close to half the hit through reduced taxes payable. I'm a "Ford guy" through and through. I don't like it anymore than you......but the most important thing - for me - is to maintain the Ford presence in Canada.....and that means maintaining St. Thomas as a viable entity. I have written all elected officials on numerous occasions and I will continue to do so. The only politico with a notiecable interest is Steve Peters......and although there MAY be others, they are certainly silent,

Rather than all the bluster about NO CONCESSIONS and so on.......I would love to see the St. Thomas Bargaining Committee make a public offer to Ford. I would think that - by now - they would have sat down with local political representatives and gained a funding/incentive commitment for Ford.....and that armed with a promise of financing support, a no-strike clause, and an agreement to have St. Thomas wages/benefits/and productivity 5% below the level of the transplants, Ford would have a tough choice to make. With record Canadian sales; and a production footprint below GM/Chrysler, all that is missing is a financial incentive and a concession package.........and Ford would be in a very tough political corner. But as it stands, it's being painted as Ford looking to remain competitive (don't forget that both GM and Chrysler have a concession package in place; and a balance sheet far better than Ford by virtue of all the debt that was forgiven through bankruptcy filings).........and the CAW standing in their way.

This runs counter to Ford's expressed desire to get out of the fleet business. The profit margins on fleet business are simply not worth the hassle (or the R&D costs....and warranty costs.....etc, etc) If anyone in the CAW/Cdn Gov't had half a brain, they would be coming up with a huge incentive package to encourage someone like Magna (buying GM's Opel operations?); or Hyundai (fast-growing and apparently looking for capacity); or Fiat (looking to bring small cars to teh North American market); or even Ford (never one to turn the other cheek to a big wad of incentive money)...........to buy the Plant and the workforce and start building another product in 2011.

Whenever they finally agree on the closure date and the severance package, I hope they negotiate the ability of terminated employees to defer unsheltered portions of their severance to the following calendar year in order to reduce the very punitive tax implications. With a closure late in the year, employees will already be in high tax brackets and any incremental payments will attract that high marginal rate. But if the payment can be deferred to January, the incremental payments will be taxed at much lower rates. Why should Government benefit at the expense of employees when a closure takes place? Ask your MP (Joe Preston) and MPP (Steve Peters)....IF you can find them.