Toyota May Cut U.S. Payroll as Unsold Autos Pile Up - Reconsidering its lifetime employment policy

[NNN0LHI]

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=ath1Iy.S4k.o&refer=home

Dec. 23 (Bloomberg) -- The worst U.S. auto market since the early 1990s may force Toyota Motor Corp. to do something that was once unthinkable: cut its North American payroll.

Asia’s largest automaker, which hasn’t shed workers in 24 years of building cars in the U.S., is exhausting options to trim costs after halting work on a Prius plant in Mississippi, idling a Texas truck factory for 15 weeks and planning to pare U.S. and Canadian output next month.

“If we don’t see a rebound by the second half of next year, they’d probably have to consider layoffs,” said Haig Stoddard, an analyst at forecaster IHS Global Insight Inc. in Troy, Michigan. “Toyota was expanding to catch up with demand. Now it’s got itself stuck with overcapacity for the first time.” snip

Job cuts can’t be ruled out as sales continue to fall, said Jim Wiseman, vice president of external affairs for Toyota’s North American production unit.

‘Never Say Never’

“We wouldn’t anticipate it getting to that point, but we never say never,” Wiseman said. Toyota has 30,000 North American employees spread among 14 assembly, engine and parts plants, and vehicles built in the region made up 56 percent of U.S. sales through November.

The Toyota City, Japan-based company hasn’t cut full-time workers since 1950 in Japan, when it last posted an annual loss, though temporary jobs have been eliminated. Toyota adopted a lifetime employment policy after years of labor turmoil, said Jim Womack, chairman and founder of Lean Enterprise Institute in Brookline, Massachusetts.

[Romulox]

1. Waiting for DU's auto experts to break down Toyota's pay rates and offer cost cutting suggestions...

<crickets>

[DainBramaged]

6. Maybe hoot owls?

[Skink]

2. Maybe the UAW should step in.

Oh wait toyota can just lay their whole workforce off.

[NNN0LHI]

3. And if the workers need government assistance just let the US taxpayer worry about paying it

The profits are already safely tucked away in some bank in Tokyo so Toyota doesn't care.

Don

[DainBramaged]

4. I feel so bad for them..................

not.

[Kolesar]

5. Put 'em to work building urban housing for those who cannot afford to drive

We are going to need housing close-in when the world starts running out of gas.

[Gman]

10. Toyota keeps idled workers on the payroll doing community service

when they aren't in training. I gotta give Toyota some credit for keeping them on the payroll instead of furloughing or laying off.

[NNN0LHI]

13. What kind of community service doesn't put someone else out of a job?

[SharonAnn]

16. The Big 3 American Auto companies do the same. It's called the "Job Bank" and it's considered "bad"

by the anti-union folks like Sen. Corker.

[DainBramaged]

15. And when are we running out of gas?

Is this going to be like another peak Starbucks discussion, so when the world runs out of coffee everybody can drink cannabis tea?

[Kolesar]

17. We import over 60% of the oil that we use ... eom

[safeinOhio]

7. What?

Sounds like they have some kind of job bank. Make GM do the same so they can compete with em.

[NNN0LHI]

9. Nothing in writing though

Just verbal promises that if the employees work hard enough they will have a job for life.

And a lot of them fall for that line of crap too.

Don

[ogneopasno]

8. WHAT? SERIOUSLY? I thought a company that ran on unicorn farts and the giggles of loving babies

could do no wrong.

[dipsydoodle]

11. The fact they can away with non Union labor

is a separate issue. They can't do in in the UK due to this : http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Employment/TradeUnions/DG_10027560 Instead of firing flack at Toyota why not get some labor laws ? They'd be equally less likely to get away with it in France too.

The cause of the problem is Wall St : not Toyota who it looks as though they're doing their best.

[NNN0LHI]

12. The workers at these plants could have unionized a long time ago

The workers decided to believe the lies the companies told them instead.

Who's fault is that?

Don

[Idealism]

14. The UAW strikes again!

Is there no company that can withstand their income-depleting power?!



So, again, who wants to tell me the Big Three's problems are the unions? Go right ahead.

[nadinbrzezinski]

19. Well you see it is the unions... (and somebody does believe that crap, I don't)

but you dared us, so somebody had to

:-)

[Idealism]

21. You are a brave soul indeed!

:)

[malaise]

18. But, but but

I thought it was the wicked UAW causing all these problems.

[nadinbrzezinski]

20. Hold it, it is the union wages... oh wait, they are not Union

it could not be the world wide recession, now could it?