Thousands show up for chance at 100 Rolls-Royce jobs

[704wipes]

Source: Indianapolis Star

The prospect of jobs drew thousands of applicants Saturday to Rolls-Royce's Indianapolis plant, forcing the company to close the doors on an advertised job fair.

Rolls-Royce officials earlier had promoted the event with a notice that they would be screening experienced applicants for 100 machinist jobs starting at $17.53 an hour.

By 8 a.m., additional throngs of job-seekers were lining Raymond Street outside the training center's locked gate. A security guard collected resumes and promised to forward them to hiring managers.

Rolls-Royce, headquartered in Britain, is Indiana's second-largest manufacturer, with 2.4 million square feet of manufacturing space in Indianapolis, where it employs about 4,300, according to company information.

Read more: http://www.indystar.com/article/20081214/LOCAL/812140376

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Way to GO, Georgie !!

Article says a lot of applicants are people who HAVE jobs in the auto/related industry in Indiana and are uncertain about them. One guy just got laid off from Ford. Another woman is worried about all the hours cut backs currently at her Indiana Mitsubishi Plant. People lined up as early as 4 a.m. and the line went for blocks.

[pampango]

1. Wow. A factory that is hiring - in the MidWest!

Of course, it's only expanding "to meet increased demand for its aerospace engines for military planes and helicopters." And Rolls-Royce is another example of a "foreign" (British, if that counts as foreign) company producing things that American companies should be producing, in this case engines for military aircraft. One would think that there is a national security issue with this type of situation.

[dipsydoodle]

3. national security issue ?

That depends on who the shareholders are as they own the company. I assume you've got a list - do please enlighten all of us.

edit : here's a clue http://www.rolls-royce.com/northamerica/default.htm 35% of shares are US owned.

[pampango]

4. Would it be a national security issue if Rolls-Royce were owned by China or Bahrain?

Is the key to your argument that the nationality of the shareholders that is the important factor in determining whether a company should be entrusted with the production of military hardware?

While I can see the logic that not trusting Rolls-Royce is carrying things too far, would we trust Honda, Toyota, and Nissa to produce engines for military aircraft (if they had division that did that)? They, too, are publicly owned corporations with diversity of shareholders that makes them not just "Japanese" companies?

I see posts here everyday that allowing "Japanese" auto companies to thrive in the US jeopardizes our national security, because who will build our tanks and other military equipment in the future if we have the need? Here is a "foreign" company that is producing our military equipment now.

[dipsydoodle]

6. Rolls Royce USA

is an American company with headquarters in Washington DC. As mentioned above 35% of the parent company is owned by US interests.

[pampango]

9. I have no problem with an American subsidiary of a British company

producing military equipment.

There is some irony, however, that if the company in Indianapolis was China First Automobile Group Corp USA or Bahrain Aircraft Corporation USA or Honda Aircraft Division USA, there might be more complaining about "foreign" ownership in our defense industry.

[dipsydoodle]

12. I'll tell you where the problem lies

or may do in the future. The entire petrodollar recycling program is based on recipients/holders investing those back in the USA. That has contributed substantially to your growth and also allowed dollars to printed wholesale but unbacked. There is nothing to stop those countries from buying almost any US company lock stock and barrel.

[pattmarty]

14. AND, this "buying" has been going on faster and faster.............

...........since the late 70's. This country is headed for being the financial capital of the world with 2 classes/types of "workers", the better educated and financially better off in the financial "industry", and all the rest of us working in the "service" industries (the McDonald sector).

[LanternWaste]

25. Not really anything new...

"Here is a "foreign" company that is producing our military equipment now...."

And did so in the Second World War-- as many of out top aircraft used British variations (with further American modifications) of the Rolls-Royce made Merlin engines.

[geckosfeet]

2. Ahh. Cheap plentiful labor. A republicans dream.

[marylanddem]

5. How ironic is this - building cars for the very very rich

and the poor clamoring for a chance to build them. What the fuck is wrong with this picture?

[dipsydoodle]

7. This is nothing to do with cars

The Rolls Royce brand name for cars was bought by BMW ages ago and the cars are manufactured in England only.

[Blue_Tires]

21. not quite...this is for airplane engines

and the pentagon-backed market for war is still very strong

[JVS]

8. $17.53! Now, that's a respectable wage, but if I always imagined Rolls Royce to be a place...

where the cars were built by engineers and master craftsmen with surgeon-like skill. I'd expect the makers of such cars to be earning money like a doctor, and salaried not on a wage basis.

[muriel_volestrangler]

11. Not cars - jet turbines

as it says in the article. Rolls-Royce turbines and cars have been entirely separate companies for at least 35 years (possibly longer - it was about 35 years ago that a Conservative government nationalised the jet engine business to stop it failing, for national security reasons).

[DS1]

18. I'd rather the skilled craftsmen work on turbines

a flaw in one of them will get people killed much faster than a misaligned grille

[scarface2004]

10. next up...job riots!

this is just the beginnig of the long road into despair!

[rucky]

13. Rolls Royce is the Cadilliac of cars, but

there seems to be no shortage of skilled labor. we could do so much more.

[dipsydoodle]

15. Not another one !

Read my lips........this has got nothing whatsoever to do with Rolls Royce cars.

[izquierdista]

16. Can't outshout advertising

Rolls-Royce = Luxury cars

What are you trying to do? Talk facts when there is market branding and consumer reaction to be trifled with? Next thing, you'll try to tell me I'm not lovin'it when I hear a story about someone named McDonald.

[dipsydoodle]

17. The cars were split off years ago

BMW own that brand name and VW own Bentley. :hi:

[Sadie5]

19. About Rolls

This was owned years ago by GM and was known as plant#5 where they manufactured helicopters and had Air Force contracts. Hard times in the late 80s saw it being sold to 5-6 working investors who kept it a few years, then sold at a huge profit to Rolls. They are UAW workers with decent wages and benefits. They operate on government contracts and still turn out helicopters. When the Iraq war ends you will see job losses at Rolls. When rolls decided to buy this place the sale was for nothing more than the lucrative contracts IMO. Rolls, along with Allison Transmission and the Chevy plant are what keeps Indianapolis going.

[dipsydoodle]

22. I think that what happened in the UK

was that at one time Rolls was nationalized and then at a later date it was privatized again and that was when the car divison was hived off / sold to BMW. BMW in turn were miffed becuase they couldn't get Bentley as well and Bentleys were alweays the sports models -that's now VW Audi Group.

I notice that the OP says FROM $17 odd/ hour. I'm sure a lot of the engineers get more that that. I think the union here would be the Amalgamated Union of Engineering Workers.

I read a lot here on DU about the Japanese car factories being non union. That would be impossible in the UK factories because just about everyone here has the right to belong to an appropriate union should they wish to do soSee here for smoe details ; http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Employment/TradeUnions/DG_10027560 Some of that came about when they outlawed "closed shops"

[muriel_volestrangler]

23. The motor car division was hived off in 1973, just 2 years after the nationalisation

http://www.practicallaw.com/7-100-8290

and the re-privatisation didn't happen until 1987. BMW and Volkswagen didn't get involved until 1998.

[dipsydoodle]

24. Thanks

I couldn't remember the exact background.

[slackmaster]

20. Wrong

Rolls Royce is the Rolls Royce of cars.