Toyota to Close Only Union Factory In U.S. Next Month

[Bluebear]

The NUMMI factory in Fremont, California manufactured the Corolla automobile and the Tacoma pick-up. A total of 5,400 employees will be affected, including 4,550 UAW hourly workers. The move of Tacoma activities to a non-unionized plant in Texas will reault in only 1,100 nonunionized positions.

Atsushi Niimi, Toyota’s executive vice president in charge of North America, said in a statement: “It just would not be economically viable to continue the production contract with NUMMI. This is most unfortunate, and we deeply regret having to take this action.”

http://inthesetimes.com/working/entry/4814/more_worker_casualties_in_a_bleak_economy/

[Xipe Totec]

1. It looks like they decided to put all their eggs in one basket,

then smash the basket, tie a rope around it, toss it over the bridge, and then burn the bridge.

[tammywammy]

2. The plant was part of a partnership with GM and GM's already pulled out. n/t

[pscot]

3. Unfortunate for Toyota

A fucking disaster for 5500 people.

[TheCowsCameHome]

4. Toyota has UAW workers?

I didn't know that.

[msongs]

5. America's corporate enemies strike again nt

[endless october]

6. that sucks.

i actually felt a bit bad for Toyota. shit happens with design that you don't anticipate.

but union busting is something i don't support. union workers are kind of an endangered species, and the cheaper shit we've gotten from getting rid of unions has not saved the economy.

[Statistical]

7. I know it is fun to bash Toyota but the plant makes little sense.

The plant was designed as a partnership when average US auto sales were 45% higher than today.

The plant was joint partnership with GM who has already bailed on it leaving Toyota holding the bag.

The sad thing is there still is substantial excess capacity in the US.

Peak auto sales were in 200 at just under 18 million units.



Today we are looking at 12 million units.

It may be 3 to 4 decades before population pressures get us back up to 18 million units.

For Toyota to continue to operate a joint venture plant without their partner in an enviroment where annual sales have fallen so much just doesn't make sense.

[tammywammy]

8. This also has been known since at least August that Toyota was leaving the plant

GM cut off the partnership and pulled out months ago. Toyota was to remain until the end of March 2010. I remember reading this months ago.

Toyota says it will close NUMMI in March 2010
UPDATED: 8/27/09 10:00 p.m. ET

Toyota Motor Corp. plans to close its oldest U.S. auto plant, New United Motor Manufacturing Inc., a venture that once symbolized Toyota's zeal to learn the art of automaking in America.

Toyota's board met earlier in the day and decided to shut the Fremont, Calif., plant in March. The plant builds the Toyota Corolla and Tacoma.

Toyota has never closed an American factory and has spent the past 25 years carefully avoiding the political and public image stigma of plant closings and worker layoffs.

The move will mean that Toyota will rely on its Corolla assembly plant in Cambridge, Ontario, to fill all dealer orders for one of the market's most resilient models.

-snip-

"After the decision by General Motors to withdraw from the NUMMI joint venture, Toyota conducted a thorough review of its alternatives in light of current and anticipated market conditions," TMC Executive Vice President Atsushi Niimi said in a statement.

"Based on this review, we have determined that over the mid- to long-term, it just would not be economically viable to continue the production contract with NUMMI. This is most unfortunate, and we deeply regret having to take this action.

"We remain strongly committed to maintaining a substantial production presence in the U.S.A. and North America," Niimi said. "To that end, we will consider moving additional Corolla production back to North America over time."

-snip-

Read more: http://www.autonews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090827/OEM01/308279941#ixzz0eoHCBRmO

http://www.autonews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090827/OEM01/308279941 (Sorry subscription site)

[divideandconquer]

13. Meanwhile Toyota is opening a new plant in Mississippi to build Prius

Gee, you'd think they would reward California for it's support of the Prius.

[Bluebear]

15. And this helps the workers how? They have been trying like hell to convince Toyota to keep it open.

[blue_onyx]

12. Toyota could easily continue to operate the plant

Only 21% of the vehicles produced there were for GM. In 2008, 342,012 vehicles were produced there, so only about 71,823 were GM vehicles.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/06/29/BUAB18FS5J.DTL


"The Prius mid-size gas-electric hybrid posted year-end sales of 139,682 units. "

http://pressroom.toyota.com/pr/tms/toyota-reports-december-and-2009-150487.aspx?ncid=12036

Toyota intended to start building the Prius in a plant in Mississippi. Prius sales are higher than Vibe sales and could more than make up for the lost volume if Toyota chose to produce it at the California plant rather than building a plant in Mississippi.

[Bluebear]

14. "it's fun to bash Toyota"... No, it's "fun" to have Union jobs.

[madrchsod]

9. that`s a lot of scrap for the chinese melt shops

[Dont_Bogart_the_Pretzel]

10. BTW... Toyota is from Japan not China

just saying........

[divideandconquer]

11. Yeah, Japan was the one bombed Pearl Harbor and invaded Alaska

China has never attacked American soil.

[Libertas1776]

16. "China has never attacked American soil"

Yet.

[jmowreader]

18. Except for the melamine-laced cat food, that is.

[BrightKnight]

17. I was very impressed with a Vibe

that I rented for a few weeks last summer. It was very well designed and well made. Somebody in the plant was getting the job done right.