Job Creation & Labor
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Daily industrial news and top headlines for plant and maintenance managers
Google Cutting 1,200 More Motorola Jobs
March 8, 2013 10:13 am | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsGoogle is cutting an additional 1,200 jobs in its Motorola division as the unprofitable cellphone maker struggles to compete. Last year, Google Inc. announced 4,000 Motorola job cuts. The latest reductions are in addition to those and will be in countries including the U.S., China and India.
Weekly Unemployment Claims Fall To 340,000
March 7, 2013 12:27 pm | by Christopher S. Rugaber, AP Economics Writer | News | CommentsThe Labor Department says applications fell 7,000 in the week ended March 2. That's near five-year lows reached in January. And the four-week average, a less volatile measure, dropped 7,000 to 348,750. That's the lowest since March 2008, just a few months into the Great Recession.
Preparing A Workforce For Advanced Manufacturing
March 4, 2013 2:43 pm | by Science Nation | Videos | CommentsThe Advanced Technological Education (ATE) Program at the National Science Foundation (NSF) focuses on the education of technicians for high technology fields. ATE supports rigorous educational programs that incorporate industry recognized skills and competencies to prepare a qualified technical workforce for industries that are vitally important to the nation's prosperity and security.
Tyson To Close Springdale Plant, Move Workers
March 4, 2013 10:16 am | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsTyson Foods has announced plans to close its small processing plant in Springdale. The company announced this week that "changing demand for certain specialty products" led to the decision to shut down the plant. The company says the plant's about 60 hourly workers will be offered jobs at other company locations in Springdale and northwest Arkansas.
GM's Opel, Employees Seal Deal On German Plant
March 1, 2013 10:22 am | by Geir Moulson, Associated Press | News | CommentsGeneral Motors Co.'s Opel unit reached a deal with its employee council on Thursday to keep car production going at a troubled German plant until the end of 2016, after which it hopes to keep the site open as a components factory. The announcement followed long-running and sometimes rancorous negotiations on a turnaround plan for GM's struggling European unit.
Boeing Cuts Back On Contract Workers At SC Plant
March 1, 2013 10:20 am | by Bruce Smith, Associated Press | News | CommentsBoeing is trimming the number of temporary contract workers employed at its South Carolina assembly plant. The company says the reductions have been planned for some time and have nothing to do with battery problems in its 787 jetliners. Spokeswoman Candy Eslinger says the North Charleston plant employs more than 6,100 workers including regular employees and contract workers.
Chrysler To Invest $374M In The U.S.
February 28, 2013 2:16 pm | by Tom Krisher, AP Auto Writer | News | CommentsChrysler said it will invest nearly $400M and create 1,250 new jobs at transmission and metal casting factories in the Kokomo, Indiana, area. CEO Sergio Marchionne confirmed that Chrysler will spend $162M and add 850 new jobs at a former Getrag Transmission plant in nearby Tipton. The company will spend another $212M for equipment and tooling at three other factoring, creating 400 new jobs.
Caterpillar To Cut 1,400 Belgium Jobs
February 28, 2013 2:14 pm | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsConstruction equipment maker Caterpillar says it will cut more than one in three jobs at its Belgian plant because of high labor costs and sluggish growth in its European market. Caterpillar Inc. says Thursday it plans to cut 1,400 of the 3,400 jobs at its Gosselies plant south of Brussels alongside other measures aimed at restoring the site's competitiveness.
Sequester Defense Cuts To Impact Thousands In AL
February 28, 2013 1:13 pm | by NBC News | Videos | CommentsIf lawmakers cannot find a way to avoid the sequester, thousands of workers at the Anniston Army Depot and Redstone Arsenal in Alabama will take a pay cut. The effect would be particularly devastating in Huntsville, AL, because the local economy is so dependent on Redston.
School Helps Bring Manufacturing Jobs Back To The U.S.
February 27, 2013 3:51 pm | by AFTHQ | Videos | CommentsAustin Polytechnical Academy was founded as a partnership between labor and business to train students for high-end manufacturing jobs that often remain unfilled for lack of trained talent. The goal of this school is to educate students in all areas of manufacturing.
ND Supreme Court: Sugar Workers Can Get Benefits
February 27, 2013 2:24 pm | by Kristi Eaton, Associated Press | News | CommentsMore than 400 American Crystal Sugars workers in North Dakota who are locked out in a contract dispute are eligible for unemployment benefits, the state Supreme Court ruled. The decision reverses a lower court's ruling that said the workers were not eligible for benefits from Job Service North Dakota because state law prohibits unemployment insurance for workers involved in labor disputes.
Obama Warns Spending Cuts Could Idle Shipbuilder
February 26, 2013 2:13 pm | by Nedra Pickler, Associated Press | News | CommentsPresident Barack Obama is arguing that looming government-wide spending cuts could idle military resources like naval aircraft carriers, while Republicans are criticizing the president for taking his arguments outside Washington instead of staying to work out a plan before Friday's deadline.
In Grim French North, Worker Unrest Looks To Last
February 26, 2013 10:30 am | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsWorkers at a dying French tire factory who've become the butt of American jokes are staging a day of last-ditch protests to try to save their jobs. The protests Tuesday at the Goodyear plant in the northern city of Amiens come after efforts to find a new buyer for the struggling plant have fizzled.
Judge Rules For Pearl River Co. In Plant Dispute
February 26, 2013 10:26 am | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsA Pearl River County judge has ruled against a group of residents who sought to block development of five acres near the construction site of a sand drying plant in Pearl River County. The Alliance Consulting Group is locating the plant on 30 acres between Nicholson and Picayune. The $30 million plant will service the oil industry. It will create 40-to-50 jobs.
New Poll Shows Wide Support To Hike Minimum Wage
February 25, 2013 12:56 pm | by NBC News | Videos | CommentsNBC News contributor and formed chief economist to Vice President Biden, Jared Bernstein discusses the big debate over the benefits of raising the minimum wage to $9 an hour. A new poll finds wide support for raising the minimum wage by a nearly 3:1 margin.
CAT Considers Closing Central PA Plant
February 22, 2013 2:14 pm | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsHeavy machinery manufacturer Caterpillar Inc. is considering closing its distribution facility in central Pennsylvania. The York Distribution Center in Springettsbury Township employs 250 people. Caterpillar spokesman Jim Dugan says the workers were notified in September about the possibility the facility could move elsewhere in the eastern U.S.
Ford Adds 450 Jobs At Cleveland Plant
February 22, 2013 12:00 pm | by CNN Money | Videos | CommentsFord's Americas President Joe Hinrichs talks with CNNMoney about Ford's plan to bring manufacturing back to the United States, Ford's eco-boost engine overcapacity in Europe, and the growing North American demand for the eco-boost engines. This growing demand for fuel-efficient vehicles has prompted Ford to expand engine production in the U.S., adding 450 jobs at one of the company's Ohio plants.
Vestas To Cut 10 Percent Of CO Work Force
February 21, 2013 4:24 pm | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsMore layoffs are coming to wind turbine manufacturer Vestas. The company announced Thursday it was cutting about 10 percent of its manufacturing work force in Colorado. It blamed the battle in Congress over a tax credit for wind generators. Congress last month granted a last-minute one-year extension of the $12 billion credit.
U.S. CEO Ridicules French Workers As Time-Wasting
February 21, 2013 4:23 pm | by Thomas Adamson, Associated Press | News | CommentsA straight-talking U.S. businessman and a European socialist government were never likely to become the firmest of friends, but a letter from Maurice Taylor, CEO of tire-maker Titan International, blasting the French work-ethic has ruffled France's feathers.
Anger After U.S. Boss Insults France's Workers
February 21, 2013 4:23 pm | by Reuters | Videos | CommentsFrench workers have hit back at scathing comments made about them by an American tycoon. Maurice Taylor, the CEO of U.S. tire company Titan International told France's industry minister in a letter published by French media that he didn't want to take over a struggling tire plant as the workforce ''works only three hours.''
Ex-Hostess Brands Workers Eligible For Federal Aid
February 20, 2013 1:42 pm | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsIowa workers who lost jobs when Hostess Brands went out of business are eligible for federal income, training and job search benefits. The maker of Twinkies and other snacks ceased operations in November, laying off dozens of workers at a Waterloo bakery and distribution center, as well as truck drivers and local retail employees in Iowa.
Food Manufacturer To Open Plant In Clinton
February 20, 2013 1:36 pm | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsA food processor and manufacturer says it will open a $4.7 million production facility in Clinton, creating more than 200 jobs. Global Food Group says it will renovate an existing facility and create 224 jobs. The plant will produce sandwiches, quesadillas, tortillas and burritos for retail sales.
New Boeing Contract Splits Engineers, Tech Workers
February 20, 2013 10:18 am | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsBoeing Co.'s engineers have accepted a new four-year contract while technical workers rejected their offer and voted to authorize a future strike. The union representing both groups had recommended rejection of the contract because it would not provide pensions to new employees. They would have a 401k retirement plan instead.
EU: Mittal Steel Agrees To Suspend Cuts, Closures
February 20, 2013 10:12 am | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsThe European Union's executive arm says the boss of steel maker ArcelorMittal has promised to suspend planned job cuts and plant closures in Europe through June. The EU Commission said Wednesday that CEO Lakshmi Mittal agreed after talks with Industrial Commissioner Antonio Tajani late Tuesday to suspend all restructuring programs until the body publishes its plan to help Europe's steel industry this summer.
Manufacturing’s Evolving Workforce
February 20, 2013 8:00 am | by Bob Dean, Executive Director, Business Transformation, Cisco | Blogs | CommentsPop culture references manufacturing as the factories of the 1800s or modern day overseas sweatshops — full of mind-numbing, remedial tasks in dark and dingy factories. Today’s manufacturing environments tell a much different story: clean and safe with employees managing advanced machinery that drives innovation and productivity. But are these stereotypes creating barriers to attract new employees to the industry?
