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    Strike

    Just annouced on TV that Porsche will be strikebound from next Thursday onwards.

    brgds, Tom

    Re: Strike

    Really nice. Per my dealer my C4S is scheduled for a March 1 build. A quick Google search seems to indicate this strike will be short, but it might get worse if issues are not resolved by the end of the month.

    Oh Sh*t!

    My C2S Cab is due to be built 3/8...Hope they can resolve it quickly.

    Re: ed

    This should work out just perfect with my May Euro delivery! Last time I picked up a Pcar in 1984 during a strike, I sat for 6 hours in their waiting lounge, as they tried to deliver the car. Drank way too many Cokes!

    Re: ed

    Anyone have anymore details on the strike?

    Re: ed

    Thats all I need...

    Re: ed

    Swell. No WONDER they were not budging on my paint to sample during Friday's telecon. They must have known this was coming.

    Dan


    Re: Strike

    Swell. First my C2S was delayed waiting for the Cobalt Blue paint, now my ship date of 3/2/06 doesn't seem likely. Oh well, just a little more time with my M3.

    Re: Strike

    Great. Porsche provides pretty stable jobs, even a bonus, they invest money in Germany and...the union calls for a strike.

    Germany has serious economic problems right now, next year our VAT will increase by 3%(!) because the state doesn't have enough money and too many debts.
    In my business for example, they introduced some pretty intrusive and harsh measures to forbid certain rebates from the factories for us. Can you imagine? The state inteferres with how we are doing LEGAL business. They want to increase working force and to reduce the unemployment rate and at the same time, they force me to put people on the street. Very clever. Of course I won't do that because I need my employees (I have two little kids and I want to see them grow up, not only on vacations) but employee cost has increased a lot. If I would tell you guys how much I pay insurance/social security for my employees, especially the people in the US would

    To be honest: right now I don't see any light at the end of the tunnel. Companies are moving productions outside Germany, same applies to development. And once they've gone...

    Re: Strike

    Same for France, they just released a study than there are more than 1 million french expatriates and half of them don't want to go back to work in France EVER. So you can get free education in France, then you just go elsewhere to make money, pay your taxes and use your abilities. Then you come back to retire, ah!

    Re: Strike

    Well if Porsche wasn't such a profit machine...

    Re: Strike

    Quote:
    RC said:
    Great. Porsche provides pretty stable jobs, even a bonus, they invest money in Germany and...the union calls for a strike.

    Germany has serious economic problems right now, next year our VAT will increase by 3%(!) because the state doesn't have enough money and too many debts.
    In my business for example, they introduced some pretty intrusive and harsh measures to forbid certain rebates from the factories for us. Can you imagine? The state inteferres with how we are doing LEGAL business. They want to increase working force and to reduce the unemployment rate and at the same time, they force me to put people on the street. Very clever. Of course I won't do that because I need my employees (I have two little kids and I want to see them grow up, not only on vacations) but employee cost has increased a lot. If I would tell you guys how much I pay insurance/social security for my employees, especially the people in the US would

    To be honest: right now I don't see any light at the end of the tunnel. Companies are moving productions outside Germany, same applies to development. And once they've gone...



    By making itself more profitable, Porsche was hoping to ensure its longer-term survival as an independent company, something that would provide a long-term benefit to all the Porsche workers, and continue to provide customers with some of the finest cars in the world. Now the union members decide to go goofy, attempt to destroy that profitability, and incidentally, their own prospects for long-term employment at high-paying jobs.

    If the union succeeds in bilking the company, it will only be to their members' own long-term harm. As a professional economist, I am constantly amazed at the ignorance of union leaders and their members when it comes to doing things that hurt them in the long run.

    Jim

    Re: Strike

    True Jim! Plenty of examples to be found lately.

    Re: Strike

    Quote:
    Jim48 said:
    By making itself more profitable, Porsche was hoping to ensure its longer-term survival as an independent company, something that would provide a long-term benefit to all the Porsche workers, and continue to provide customers with some of the finest cars in the world. Now the union members decide to go goofy, attempt to destroy that profitability, and incidentally, their own prospects for long-term employment at high-paying jobs.

    If the union succeeds in bilking the company, it will only be to their members' own long-term harm. As a professional economist, I am constantly amazed at the ignorance of union leaders and their members when it comes to doing things that hurt them in the long run.

    Jim



    Jim, you're absolutely right, but unfortunately German unions and economic logic are located at two different planets.

    @Texas911: Porsche's profits are not the trigger for the asked increase in wages (ask 5%), the German union and labour right system is based on a very stupid and inflexible idea: wages are negotiated based on regions/industry sectors, not individual companies. That means a small business with low profit margins has to pay the same wages as Porsche. Those small and midsized companies (still the backbone of German economy, employing some 75% of the total German workforce) are the real loosers (distributionwise they are depending on the weak local market, no chance to transfer production into low cost countries, no chance to flee the tax system). That's the reason, why the blue chips still are doing quite OK (with Germany still being the world's leader in exports) while those depending on the national market (both companies and employees) are in deep sh..t.

    Unless Germany won't allow for real competition in the labour market (meaning to abolish the crazy "one region-one salary" and "one industry sector-one salary" system) and restructuring the social security system, we won't see any recovery. Reminds me of driving a Porsche at high speed heading towards a wall without operating the brakes (who would do that unless he wants to commit suicide ?).

    I guess for RC's business (distributing drugs) it's even worse, as the government tries to conserve the ineffective socialist health insurance system by directly interfering into pricing.

    Back to Porsche: the company easily could compensate a mild wage increase by abolishing the voluntary paid annual bonus (3k Euro per employee), but as long as Porsche is member of the industry federation which negotiates wages with the unions at a regional/industry sector level there is no legal room for an individual solution. The irony is that no company is legally forced to be part of the system (they are allowed to terminate the membership), but then they would be forced to negotiate wages with their own employees (or delegates of the Porsche workforce) and especially very profitable companies like Porsche would fear that the employees would ask for an even bigger wages increase. And therefore not only the unions are part of the problem, but also all the CEO's who don't have the balls to leave the system (kind of hypocritical to ask for more flexibility in press interviews but voluntarily remaining part of the old inflexible federation system at the same time).

    Sorry for the long post, but I thought those Rennteamers not familiar with the German system might be interested in better understanding why an evolutionary restrucuring of the system does not work - we just have to get rid of it and implement something totally new (oh, well actually not that new - just adopt some of the good elements of the anglo-american economic sytem), but people still like to believe those politicians promising to conserve the old system with some minor changes. It's no coincidence that the now free countries of the former eastern block have not opted for the German system, but went for the anglo-american system.

    Now I hope that my pick-up scheduled for the second half of March won't be postponed and that I don't have to leave the factory in my new baby passing strike pickets holding big red flags.....not good for my blood pressure at all

    Re: Strike

    Porsche-Jeck, I was waiting for you to weigh in on this. My company recently sold our quotas (shares) in a joint venture we held for more than 30 years in Germany. Our JV and our partner were located in Bad Homburg, and we too had "interesting" dealings with IG Metall. This certainly isn't the forum for this, but the German trade unions and bleak manufacturing landscape was the primary reaon for us vacating Germany as a manufacturing location - further driving us into PRC.

    Re: Strike

    Dick, you might have stopped supplying parts for the CGT via the JV but as long as you buy German cars, I won't complain
    Hope your new baby will be delivered on time
    We better share our P-experiences rather than our dealings with the union (would be an endless thread ) - much more enjoyable Any news from Laguna Seca ?

    Re: Strike

    Do they have a strike today at Porsche?

    Dave

    Re: Strike

    Quote:
    Jim48 said:
    Quote:
    RC said:
    Great. Porsche provides pretty stable jobs, even a bonus, they invest money in Germany and...the union calls for a strike.

    Germany has serious economic problems right now, next year our VAT will increase by 3%(!) because the state doesn't have enough money and too many debts.
    In my business for example, they introduced some pretty intrusive and harsh measures to forbid certain rebates from the factories for us. Can you imagine? The state inteferres with how we are doing LEGAL business. They want to increase working force and to reduce the unemployment rate and at the same time, they force me to put people on the street. Very clever. Of course I won't do that because I need my employees (I have two little kids and I want to see them grow up, not only on vacations) but employee cost has increased a lot. If I would tell you guys how much I pay insurance/social security for my employees, especially the people in the US would

    To be honest: right now I don't see any light at the end of the tunnel. Companies are moving productions outside Germany, same applies to development. And once they've gone...



    By making itself more profitable, Porsche was hoping to ensure its longer-term survival as an independent company, something that would provide a long-term benefit to all the Porsche workers, and continue to provide customers with some of the finest cars in the world. Now the union members decide to go goofy, attempt to destroy that profitability, and incidentally, their own prospects for long-term employment at high-paying jobs.

    If the union succeeds in bilking the company, it will only be to their members' own long-term harm. As a professional economist, I am constantly amazed at the ignorance of union leaders and their members when it comes to doing things that hurt them in the long run.

    Jim



    They might learn their lesson when General Motors goes out of business.

    Re: Strike

    They said March 1st, so thats today. So is the strike on ?

    Re: Strike

    Quote:
    RC said:
    Great. Porsche provides pretty stable jobs, even a bonus, they invest money in Germany and...the union calls for a strike.





    Guys... soon will be Porsche made in China... Just the where some of the BMW are now moving into Europe

    Re: Strike

    Strike today?

    Re: Strike

    Here we have a very important topic, yet little info. Are there any Rennteamers in Duetschland who watch their local news and can shed some further light on this.
    Danke..

    Re: Strike

    The union announced that they would initiate a so called warning strike on Wednesday, March 1. Such warning strikes usually would take only few hours and are to be understood as a sort of prelude (just showing muscles). I 've seen no press coverage telling whether such a warning strike took place yesterday at Porsche's Zuffenhausen factory.

    If negotiations between the union and industry federation would stay without results until the end of March, then the unions might initiate a full scale strike (union leaders have mentioned March 28 as the possibly first day for a full scale strike).

    So we have to wait until the end of March to know how the negotiations will develop

    My guess is that everybody with a March build production slot should relax, others unfortunately have to wait for further news

    My dealer yesterday confirmed factory pick-up for my new baby for week starting March 27 (o.k. it's assembled in Finland , but once a strike would go on full scale - holy Ferry may prevent us from this - Boxster/Cayman assembly would be affected also, as all the engines are built in Zuffenhausen).

    Sorry for not being able to provide more enlightening news for the moment

    Re: Strike

    http://www.forbes.com/home/feeds/afx/2006/02/28/afx2558467.html

    This explains the warning strikes and the full blown strike that will follow March 28.

    Google news "ig metall".

    Re: Strike

    Thanks for the responses Porsche-Jeck and tkids..

    Re: Strike

    Much to do about nothing. The matter will be resolved. However, I do agree the structural economic policies pose a long term threat to the competitive viability of several European countries.

    Self preservation is a potent force and will result in incremental changes.

    Re: Strike

    Quote:
    nberry said:
    The matter will be resolved.



    This time I'm sure that all Rennteamers share your wishes

    I'm afraid the unions are in a strike mood this time (the public service union has initiated a full strike in some states commencing three weeks ago - no solution yet). The unions have lost hundred of thousands members in the most recent years, they have to proof that they are able to achieve something. There is another psychological problem: some eight or ten years ago the unions have been told that the employment rate would recover if unions would agree on moderate or even no wage increase, which indeed happened in most cases (disposable income for the average worker is stable at best due to inflation, increased social security costs, not to talk about gasoline prices). But instead of employing more people even some quite profitable blue chip corporations laid off ten thousands of people and the stock market has been celebrating the massive lay offs. At the same time CEO compensation packages increased consistently.
    I'm not following this oversimplified marketing versions of the unions, but workers may do so.
    Again, the industry leaders are not without guilt also as they missed to tell the full truth to the unions years ago: moderate wages PLUS more work hours - the latter is the key IMO (look at the ridiculous 28 hrs per week system at VW and you know why they are in trouble).

    BTW: I recently saw a TV coverage regarding productivity in the automtive industry providing some interesting numbers: Porsche needs 35 hrs to produce a 997, VW needs 55 hrs to produce a VW Passat - certainly one has to consider the different outsourcing ratios (I'm not aware of these), but still impressive numbers.

    Re: Strike

    I have yet to see one single example of how a strike has actually improved the economy. Good economy = more jobs. Bad economy = less jobs. Strikes = bad economy. Stupid concept.

    Sorry for you guys experiencing delivery delays.

    Re: Strike

    Quote:
    Ente said:
    I have yet to see one single example of how a strike has actually improved the economy.


    The 1984 strike actually saved the British economy...









    ... it killed the unions.

     
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