Injin Posted September 22, 2009 Share Posted September 22, 2009 http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/busi...icle6844056.ece Almost 1,400 British jobs will be lost at two Vauxhall plants according to a leaked business plan that is to be discussed this week at the headquarters of Germany’s struggling Opel car company.The plan, worked out by Magna, the Canadian-based spare parts venture that has agreed to take over Opel and Vauxhall from General Motors, proposes 11,000 job cuts across Europe. No details of how the job cuts will affect individual plants in Britain have yet emerged, although Opel insiders said that the factory in Luton, which produces the Vivaro van, will be worst hit. Vauxhall also operates a plant in Ellesmere Port. The plan, leaked to the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, will fuel suspicion that Germany, though by no means immune from the cuts, has put itself in a favourable position. The British cuts represent a 30 per cent loss in jobs, from 4,475 staff to 3,102 workers. The Germans are losing barely 17 per cent of their workers. Spanish workers have taken to the streets because some elements of the Opel Corsa assembly are being switched from Saragossa to Eisenach in eastern Germany. As a result, more than 2,000 jobs are to be axed in Spain, but only 42 in Eisenach. Carl-Peter Forster, who is head of General Motors European division and head of the Opel supervisory board, said: "We always said that we would have to restructure in order to stay competitive in the long term, given the massive crisis in the car industry." Magna agreed, as a condition of receiving €4.5 billion in a bridging loan and credit guarantees, to keep all four German plants open. Klaus Franz, head of the Opel works council, said he was not prepared to accept the proposed job cuts in Germany, where the workforce will be reduced from 24,700 to 20,584 by 2011. The biggest loser, under the plan, would be Belgium, where the Antwerp plant will be closed down completely, with the loss 2,517 jobs. Workers there are set to protest again on Wednesday. Mr Forster said: “We will of course being looking through all the possibilities for Antwerp to see if something can still be done. Naturally, we have to take into account the fact that all the investors believe that Antwerp cannot survive in the long term.†Where the jobs will go Germany: 4,116 Belgium: 2,517 Spain: 2,090 UK: 1,373 Poland: 437 Austria: 0 Hungary: 0 Italy: 0 Total: 10,952 The devil makes work for .... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest P-Diddly Posted September 22, 2009 Share Posted September 22, 2009 http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/busi...icle6844056.eceThe devil makes work for .... Blimey, Germans are getting hit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warwick-Watcher Posted September 22, 2009 Share Posted September 22, 2009 Blimey, Germans are getting hit. Not as much proportionately as the Brits - Telegraph says 1,800 to go. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbys...-stitch-up.html same old same old - meanwhile Lord Mandy is probably busy in the gents loo with his Brazilian lover. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexw Posted September 22, 2009 Share Posted September 22, 2009 http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/busi...icle6844056.eceThe devil makes work for .... ahh the stupidity of merchantilism. Who do the germans think will buy their goods, if their trading partners have nothing to sell to the germans, to generate the income to buy german goods?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wario Posted September 22, 2009 Share Posted September 22, 2009 Blimey, Germans are getting hit. Germans, or Ossies and Turks? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dr ray Posted September 22, 2009 Share Posted September 22, 2009 Not as much proportionately as the Brits - Telegraph says 1,800 to go.http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbys...-stitch-up.html same old same old - meanwhile Lord Mandy is probably busy in the gents loo with his Brazilian lover. Wow. No wonder. Who would have thought of employing 1800 workers to stick Vauxhall badges on imported Opels. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R K Posted September 22, 2009 Share Posted September 22, 2009 Deutschland uber alles! Es lebe die verwertung! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mildura Posted September 22, 2009 Share Posted September 22, 2009 Wow. No wonder. Who would have thought of employing 1800 workers to stick Vauxhall badges on imported Opels. Exactly. Anyone who thinks Vauxhall are going to continue as a brand is seriously kidding themselves. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest P-Diddly Posted September 22, 2009 Share Posted September 22, 2009 Exactly. Anyone who thinks Vauxhall are going to continue as a brand is seriously kidding themselves. Astra van, 1.3 tdi, 3000rpm, 6th gear, flat M-way = 100mph. Incredible thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BalancedBear Posted September 22, 2009 Share Posted September 22, 2009 ahh the stupidity of merchantilism. Who do the germans think will buy their goods, if their trading partners have nothing to sell to the germans, to generate the income to buy german goods?? Perhaps the UK should develop its own cars to sell rather than rebadging and making German designed Opels? Anyway, even if the UK buys fewer Opel cars, there is still a large worldwide market to countries which do sell things to Germany, who can buy some German cars. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mildura Posted September 22, 2009 Share Posted September 22, 2009 Astra van, 1.3 tdi, 3000rpm, 6th gear, flat M-way = 100mph.Incredible thing. In never ceases to amaze me how fast these things go, and long may they continue. But they are gonna have an Opel badge on the front very soon I suspect. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mildura Posted September 22, 2009 Share Posted September 22, 2009 Perhaps the UK should develop its own cars to sell rather than rebadging and making German designed Opels? sadly i suspect that it's a bit late for that. A succession of events; some very dodgy designs, amazing mismanagement, every government from the last 30-40 years or so, the unions, and others. All have come together to destroy any mass market car industry we once had. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wario Posted September 22, 2009 Share Posted September 22, 2009 Astra van, 1.3 tdi, 3000rpm, 6th gear, flat M-way = 100mph.Incredible thing. Anybody remember when Clarkson had a Lotus Esprit I think it was on Top Gear. As part of the track test " ... we're going to put it up against the fastest car in the world! Yes, the Vauxhall Astramax diesel!! Driven by a teenage plumber!!!" Cue Sergio Leone style music ... Astra van starts behind Clarkson in the Lotus ... ... and the Lotus was in front until it topped out at well over a ton, at which point ... the Astra took it, like a B-52 bomber sailing past Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest P-Diddly Posted September 22, 2009 Share Posted September 22, 2009 Anybody remember when Clarkson had a Lotus Esprit I think it was on Top Gear.As part of the track test " ... we're going to put it up against the fastest car in the world! Yes, the Vauxhall Astramax diesel!! Driven by a teenage plumber!!!" Cue Sergio Leone style music ... Astra van starts behind Clarkson in the Lotus ... ... and the Lotus was in front until it topped out at well over a ton, at which point ... the Astra took it, like a B-52 bomber sailing past Last time I was in the UK, I nicked one of the boys new Astravans as had another pointless meeting about nothing about 100 miles away from site. Usual Vauxhall church pew comfort levels but boy, oh boy did this thing rock for a 1300cc diesel! No sh1t, 100mph at 3000 rpm! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
non frog Posted September 22, 2009 Share Posted September 22, 2009 Perhaps the UK should develop its own cars ... It tried. It failed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrlargeredpants Posted September 22, 2009 Share Posted September 22, 2009 It tried.It failed. you've never driven an Austin allegro then? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newbonic Posted September 22, 2009 Share Posted September 22, 2009 Last time I checked (last summer) the global car/light truck manufacturing capacity was 100million vehicles p.a. And sales were at circa 60m p.a. Given what's happened over the last year I'd guess the latter is closer to 50m sales p.a. One way or the other, there are going to be huge job losses in the auto industry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clocker Posted September 22, 2009 Share Posted September 22, 2009 It tried.It failed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
interestrateripoff Posted September 22, 2009 Share Posted September 22, 2009 Yet more support for the jobless recovery. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
non frog Posted September 22, 2009 Share Posted September 22, 2009 you've never driven an Austin allegro then? Nope, the square steering wheel put me off I run an Opel Vectra diesel with the Fiat engine in it. Decent motor and cheap as chips both to buy and run. My memories of old British cars leave me cold. Cars are pretty much all the same now, boring white goods, buy something cheap and bin it when it packs up, buy another. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dubai Posted September 23, 2009 Share Posted September 23, 2009 It tried.It failed. It didn't do too badly with the Rolls Royce, the Bentley or the Aston Martin marques. The TVR Cerbera was a nice car too! Oh, and at the lower end, MG, Mini and Rover weren't too shabby in the earlier years. Or Triumph and even Austin had some good cars. In fact, come to think of it, Britain truly excelled at making cars at one time! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patfig Posted September 23, 2009 Share Posted September 23, 2009 (edited) Blimey, Germans are getting hit. Astra Nomical Edited.. sorry for my Cavalier attitude!! Edited September 23, 2009 by Patfig Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest P-Diddly Posted September 23, 2009 Share Posted September 23, 2009 Astra Nomical Edited.. sorry for my Cavalier attitude!! Oh yes! "The decision was taken in the Carlton club." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patfig Posted September 23, 2009 Share Posted September 23, 2009 Oh yes!"The decision was taken in the Carlton club." Viva Vauxhall Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest P-Diddly Posted September 23, 2009 Share Posted September 23, 2009 Viva Vauxhall It was Combo of debt and poor marketing that did it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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