> Well, laid-off American auto workers can always open up flower boutiques...
> well, can't they? Or, perhaps they can feed their families by giving golf
> lessons to each other...that's sound economic policy, right?
>
> quote
>
> http://wjz.com/topstories/topstories_story_045063532.html
>
> Chrysler To Cut 13,000 Jobs, Restructure
>
> Struggling Automaker Says It Will Cut Jobs, Close Delaware Assembly Plant
>
> CBS News Interactive: On The Job
> (CBS News) AUBURN HILLS, Mich. For Chrysler workers, Feb. 14 will now be
> known as the Valentine's Day massacre.
>
> On Wednesday, Chrysler announced its long-awaited restructuring, which
> included a 16 percent reduction in its work force, shift reductions, a plant
> closing and a surprise hint that the plan could lead to a DaimlerChrysler
> divorce.
>
> Chrysler lost more than $1 billion last year, reports CBS News correspondent
> Anthony Mason. To survive, the company says it needs to cut 13,000 jobs.
>
> The Chrysler plan calls for closing the company's Newark, Del., assembly
> plant, and reducing shifts at plants in Warren, Mich., and St. Louis. A
> parts distribution center near Cleveland also will be closed, and reductions
> could occur at other plants that make components for those facilities.
>
> Chrysler blamed the wrenching restructuring on poor sales after a shift in
> consumer taste from SUVs and trucks to more fuel-efficient vehicles. Workers
> blamed management.
>
> "It's a shame that Chrysler didn't give us something better. That's not our
> fault," said Victor Harris, 56, who works in the paint shop at the Newark
> plant and has been employed there for 35 years.
>
> Aside from the job cuts, Chrysler's German parent, DaimlerChrysler AG, said
> it is looking at all options to revive its fortunes, including partners for
> the troubled Chrysler. Its chairman wouldn't rule out a possible sale of the
> U.S. operation.
>
> With Chrysler's job losses, the domestic auto industry has eliminated or
> proposed cutting 132,000 manufacturing jobs at 64 U.S. plants since May
> 2005, said Sean McAlinden, chief economist and vice president of research at
> the nonprofit Center for Automotive Research in Ann Arbor.
>
> The devastation was partially offset by foreign brands expanding their
> manufacturing operations in the United States. During that same period,
> foreign brands, such as Japan's Toyota Motor Corp., and their suppliers have
> created 30,000 to 40,000 factory jobs in the United States. That should rise
> to 50,000 to 60,000 by 2009, McAlinden said.
>
> Chrysler announced its plan at its Auburn Hills headquarters, saying it
> hoped the move would return its U.S. operations to profitability by next
> year. Like the other domestic automakers - Ford Motor Co. and General Motors
> Corp. - DaimlerChrysler's earnings have been hit hard by rising labor costs
> and slumping sales as consumers have turned to foreign models. For years,
> the so-called Big Three pinned their fortunes on higher-priced sport utility
> vehicles and trucks, but that strategy soured when gas prices climbed to
> near $3 a gallon.
>
> Under the Chrysler plan, 11,000 production workers - 9,000 in the United
> States and 2,000 in Canada - will lose their jobs over the next three years,
> and 2,000 salaried jobs also will be cut - 1,000 this year and 1,000 in
> 2008.
>
> "Today's action by DaimlerChrysler is devastating news for thousands of
> workers, their families and their communities," United Auto Workers
> President Ron Gettelfinger and Vice President General Holiefield said in a
> joint statement. "While Chrysler Group's recent losses are not the fault of
> UAW members, they will suffer because of the reductions announced today."
>
> "We believe that this represents a solid plan to return to profitability and
> lay the groundwork for a solid future," Chrysler CEO Tom LaSorda said at a
> news conference.
>
> DaimlerChrysler Chairman Dieter Zetsche, asked repeatedly about a potential
> sale or partners for Chrysler, refused to comment.
>
> "I cannot and will not go into any further detail about the announcement we
> made today," he said during a news conference.
>
> "In this regard we do not exclude any option in order to find the best
> solution for both the Chrysler Group and DaimlerChrysler," Zetsche said.
>
> Daimler paid $40 billion for Chrysler, reports Mason. If they do sell,
> estimates are they would now get less that half of that.
>
> Zetsche acknowledged feeling pressure about Chrysler, which the company said
> was a drag on its parent's earnings. But as recently as last year, Chrysler
> was helping to prop up Mercedes, which only recently recovered from lagging
> quality and profits.
>
> Jeremy Anwyl, president of the Edmunds.com automotive information Web site,
> said potential buyers for Chrysler would be limited because of the price
> tag. He speculated that the company would be attractive to a Chinese
> automaker because it has a dealership network that could distribute
> China-built cars in the United States. Chrysler Group and China's Chery
> Automobile Co. late last year agreed on a plan for the Chinese manufacturer
> to build small cars to be sold worldwide.
>
> Nissan Motor Co. and Renault SA also could be suitors because Chrysler is
> strong in products such as minivans and trucks where Nissan is relatively
> weak, Anwyl said.
>
> And several private equity groups recently have poured billions into
> troubled auto parts makers.
>
> "There's so much money in terms of the private equity funds across all
> industries right now," Anwyl said. But if such a purchase took place, the
> firms would have to demonstrate quick results, something unlikely with
> Chrysler, Anwyl said.
>
> Gerald Meyers, a former auto executive who teaches at the University of
> Michigan, said DaimlerChrysler's work to develop and integrate common
> vehicle platforms and components suggests the divorce would be unlikely.
>
> "Once you've scrambled those eggs, it's really murder trying to separate
> them. I think Zetsche's decided to tough it out and try to make his plan
> work," Meyers said.
>
> Jim Press, who runs Toyota Motor Corp.'s North American operations, said
> Wednesday the company had no interest in any Chrysler assets, though he
> noted Toyota would always consider an alliance if it presented a "win-win"
> for both sides. He cited his company's longtime joint manufacturing venture
> with General Motors in Fremont, Calif.
>
> Bank of America analyst Ronald Tadross said he "would not be surprised if
> there is good interest in Chrysler. We see Chrysler as a decent business, at
> least relative to the other U.S. domestic manufacturers."
>
> Chrysler said Wednesday that its fourth-quarter earnings plunged on weaker
> demand at the Chrysler unit, where sales fell 7 percent. DaimlerChrysler's
> profit fell to $761 million, or 74 cents per share, as revenue slipped to
> $53.7 billion.
>
> DaimlerChrysler earned $4.26 billion, or $4.17 per share, in 2006 compared
> with 2005 earnings of $3.76 billion, or $3.70 per share.
>
> LaSorda said the company expects to lose money again in 2007, but less on an
> operating basis than in 2006. He also said the company expects to take a
> $1.3 billion charge this year for restructuring expenses.
>
> The job cuts at Chrysler will reduce by 400,000 the number of vehicles that
> operations can produce each year.
>
> The Delaware plant, which makes the slow-selling Dodge Durango and Chrysler
> Aspen mid-sized sport utility vehicles, employs about 2,100 workers.
> Chrysler plans to close it in 2009, with a shift reduction this year.
>
> Dean Almuwalld, who works in painting on the Newark plant's assembly line
> and has worked at the plant for 13 years, learned its future from news
> reports.
>
> "I'll take a transfer," the 33-year-old said as he walked into the local
> United Auto Workers hall. Almuwalld said he has relatives in Detroit. "I've
> got family there, so I'm ready to go."
>
> The Warren truck plant, with 3,313 hourly employees, makes the Dodge Ram and
> Dakota pickups, which saw sales decline last year. Chrysler plans to
> eliminate a shift there this year.
>
> Harbert Jones said he likely would keep his job at the Warren plant. Still,
> he said, these are "terrible times" for his fellow Chrysler workers.
>
> The other plant to lose a shift is the St. Louis South assembly plant, which
> makes Chrysler and Dodge minivans. It has 2,850 workers and will lose the
> shift in 2008.
>
> The Cleveland-area parts distribution center, which employs 95, will close
> sometime this year, Chrysler said.
>
> LaSorda said after the plant cuts, Chrysler will be using 100 percent of its
> factory capacity going into 2008.
>
> He also said the company will double production of four-cylinder engines at
> its new Dundee, Mich., plant, and it also plans to build a new V-6 engine at
> a plant location to be announced later.
>
> DaimlerChrysler shares rose $5.33, or 8.3 percent, to close at $69.78 on the
> New York Stock Exchange.
> (© 2007 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be
> published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press
> contributed to this report. )
>
> http://wjz.com/topstories/topstories_story_045063532.html
>
> end quote
>
> It's more than 132,000 jobs lost...add to this carnage all the done-in shops
> and businesses who depend on these workers for customers, and add the
> vendors who depend on orders from those shops and businesses....
>
> See ya in a KIA!
>
> ClassWarz
>
> p.s. thank you to the millions of fans who've written in to request my
> return...how can I not be so humble as to oblige?