Michelin has shared information about its negotiations with unions on 3 and 4 December regarding the planned closure of two factories in France. These negotiations aimed to outline a structured approach to supporting employees affected by forthcoming organisational changes.
Ford is to blame for an ‘unprecedented breakdown in industrial relations’ with its white collar staff, the Unite union said today (15 July), as more than 1,200 office staff ballot for strike action across the country. Around 500 Ford managers already have an industrial action mandate and are continuing with industrial action short of strikes. Both sets of workers, who are based in Dunton, Stratford, Dagenham, Daventry and Halewood, are in dispute with Ford and are considering coordinated strike action.
BBS Autotechnik GmbH may be the proud new owner of the Superior Industries plant in Werdohl, Germany, but the company is grappling with issues of its own. After been unable to market its wheels or generate revenue for many months due to a trademark dispute, it appears that the 240 employees at the BBS plant in Schiltach, also in Germany, have not received their wages for May and June. Local media sources report that the plant’s works council has issued an ultimatum to the management team and the new owner to pay the outstanding wages by tomorrow. Failure to do so may prompt another insolvency filing.
In response to its strategy of expanding activities beyond mobility, and against a backdrop of job-changing transformations such as digitalisation and automation, the Michelin Group has signed a three-year job and career management (GEPP) agreement with three major trade unions. Michelin says the aim of this agreement is to bolster the career growth and professional pathways of its 16,000 France-based employees
Workers union the IGBCE has responded to Michelin’s “downsizing plans” in Germany – and as expected it isn’t thrilled. Matthias Hille, head of the union’s activities in the Mainz region and a member of the Michelin Deutschland Supervisory Board, comments that IGBCE “cannot at all comprehend the proposed cutbacks” and promises that these will “meet with our resistance.”
In what may be a poorly timed coincidence the announcement of a notable reduction in Goodyear’s global workforce came just days after the union representing many employees in Germany confirmed demands for more money. On 25 January, union IG BCE shared details of upcoming negotiations on behalf of 25,000 rubber sector workers, naming Goodyear as one of the “large companies” it represents. The union’s income wishlist includes a cost of living pay rise and one-off inflation bonus.
In order to offer a “comprehensive response to evolving employee expectations” about their working environment and conditions, Michelin has entered into a new four-year agreement with the four labour unions representing its workforce in France. The tyre maker and the CFDT, CFE-CGC, CGT and SUD unions signed the ‘People and their Working Environment’ agreement on 5 January 2023.
Michelin and labour unions have signed various successive telework deals covering its workforce in France since 2019 and worked together since the start of the Covid-19 crisis to develop a teleworking vision, strategy and arrangements. On 2 December, senior Michelin management and representatives from four unions signed a new telework agreement.
Giti Tire has responded to allegations of problematic employee relations at its Richburg plant in the USA. Following the publication of a joint letter penned by the United Steelworkers (USW) union and “more than 40 civic, faith and government leaders,” David Shelton, director of industry relations, Giti Tire Manufacturing (USA), states that the tyre maker “always welcomes sincere and legitimate input from our team members and other community members.” He adds that Giti Tire’s policy is to ensure it possesses “all the facts and accurate information” before taking action on such matters and calls upon others to do likewise.
The United States International Trade Commission (USITC) has determined that passenger vehicle and light truck (PLT) tyres imported from Korea, Taiwan, and Thailand are being sold in the USA at prices that materially injure the local tyre industry. In addition, the U.S. Department of Commerce has determined that Vietnam’s government is subsidising PLT tyres that are then sold in the USA at “less than fair value.”
Wheel manufacturer BBS intends to gradually withdraw from the original equipment segment and concentrate on aftermarket business. This decision was announced by Stefan Prutscher, regional secretary of the IG Metall trade union. According to the union, BBS will cut 160 jobs at its Schiltach and Herbolzheim sites in Germany. The wheel manufacturer, which filed for bankruptcy for the third time in summer 2020, will retain 280 jobs.
Tyre production at the Continental plant in Aachen, Germany will cease at the end of next year, if not earlier. This is one of the outcomes of talks between the company and representatives of Aachen plant employees. Continental has also published details of upcoming retraining programmes.
Strong words from one of the unions representing workers at the Continental tyre factory in Aachen, Germany. Speaking with Munich-based newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung, IG BCE trade union chairman Michael Vassiliadis stressed that the planned job cuts “will be expensive”. He also claimed that Continental has turned away potential investors.
Workers Kumho Tire’s Macon, Georgia factory have voted to join the United Steelworkers (USW) union after the final completion of an election last Autumn. According to the USW, workers sought representation to fight “low wages, hazardous working conditions and abusive treatment at Kumho, which ruthlessly harassed and bullied union supporters in an attempt to derail the organizing campaign”.
According to the Federation of Dutch Trade Unions (FNV), Apollo Vredestein will stop employing temp workers hired through agencies at its Enschede plant from April 2020. This means that almost 150 temporary jobs will disappear in addition to the approximately 750 permanent jobs that the tyre maker plans to shed.
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