Vehicle supplier to lay off 200 plus

Friday, December 14, 2007

By BRIAN LAWSON

Times Business Writer brian.lawson@htimes.com

Continental says it's struggling with Chrysler cutbacks

More than 200 workers will be laid off at the Continental AG plant over the next several weeks, as the automotive supplier struggles with fewer orders from Chrysler, by far its largest customer.

The layoffs were announced by managers Thursday in employee meetings at the Jetplex Industrial Park plant. The plant was acquired from Siemens by Continental last week.

The layoffs will include 40 hourly workers by year's end, 120 to 150 hourly employees and 50 salaried employees, in the first quarter of 2008. The layoffs for the hourly workers will be based on seniority.

Joe Fadool, the vice president of operations for the plant, said Thursday was a tough day at the plant.

"It's a difficult day for our business. Resizing your company is not easy," Fadool said. "I think people understand why we are doing it, but nonetheless it is difficult losing teammates and colleagues. And I think people see we need to press forward."

The plant makes automotive electronics for car bodies, audio, dashboard and powertrain systems and currently has about 1,700 employees, 1,000 hourly and 700 salaried.

The timing of Continental's acquisition of the plant - the company's first day of ownership was Dec. 5, and included a visit from its North American CEO Bill Kozyra - was unrelated to the layoff decision, Fadool said.

During the visit, Kozyra said the plant had a bright future, but would have to prove it could compete in a global market.

Fadool, who has worked at the plant for three years, said the impact of Chrysler's slowdown had been part of the management discussions prior to Continental's acquisition and Chrysler's announcements that production plans for next year have changed a number of times since early November.

Chrysler's business problems, including an announced $1 billion loss in 2007, the elimination of four vehicle lines and the idling of a number of Chrysler plants, mean less work for the Huntsville facility, Fadool said.

"As Chrysler is resizing their business, they are reducing the number of vehicles they plan to sell and reduce their inventory levels by 100,000 vehicles, a 20 percent reduction," Fadool said. "That's a 12-to-16 percent reduction in our sales plan for 2008.

"When they produce less vehicles, we sell less electronics."

Quintin King, president of the United Auto Workers Local 1413, said the workers were aware of the problems faced by Chrysler, but the union was not informed until Wednesday that the cuts were coming. King said the union will work with Continental to reduce the number of job cuts, possibly by shifting some union workers into jobs currently held by contractors.

Chrysler work represents about 85 percent of the Huntsville plant's operations. The facility and a related plant in Cummings Research Park were owned by Chrysler and employed 2,400 people before the purchase by Siemens in 2004. The Cummings Research Park site has been closed, and some production work was moved to Mexico by Siemens beginning in 2005.

Fadool said the salaried job cuts will reach into most areas of the plant, with limited impact on research and development, which the company is continuing to push to attract new customers.

The UAW's King said the laid-off workers won't get any severance pay, but will receive holiday pay, essentially additional days paid after their last day of work Dec. 21.

King said a union employee assistance team has begun helping workers look for new jobs and contacted the local unemployment office.

Fadool said he has also been in contact with the Huntsville-Madison County Chamber of Commerce, which has agreed to assist workers in finding new jobs.

Mark Brown, the chamber's director of work force development, said he is optimistic Huntsville's strong job market means there are a number of opportunities for new workers.



Vehicle supplier to lay off 200 plus Friday, December 14, 2007 By BRIAN LAWSON Times Business Writer brian.lawson@htimes.com Continental says it's struggling with Chrysler cutbacks More than 200 workers will be laid off at the Continental AG plant over the next several weeks, as the automotive supplier struggles with fewer orders from Chrysler, by far its largest customer. The layoffs were announced by managers Thursday in employee meetings at the Jetplex Industrial Park plant. The plant was acquired from Siemens by Continental last week. The layoffs will include 40 hourly workers by year's end, 120 to 150 hourly employees and 50 salaried employees, in the first quarter of 2008. The layoffs for the hourly workers will be based on seniority. Joe Fadool, the vice president of operations for the plant, said Thursday was a tough day at the plant. "It's a difficult day for our business. Resizing your company is not easy," Fadool said. "I think people understand why we are doing it, but nonetheless it is difficult losing teammates and colleagues. And I think people see we need to press forward." The plant makes automotive electronics for car bodies, audio, dashboard and powertrain systems and currently has about 1,700 employees, 1,000 hourly and 700 salaried. The timing of Continental's acquisition of the plant - the company's first day of ownership was Dec. 5, and included a visit from its North American CEO Bill Kozyra - was unrelated to the layoff decision, Fadool said. During the visit, Kozyra said the plant had a bright future, but would have to prove it could compete in a global market. Fadool, who has worked at the plant for three years, said the impact of Chrysler's slowdown had been part of the management discussions prior to Continental's acquisition and Chrysler's announcements that production plans for next year have changed a number of times since early November. Chrysler's business problems, including an announced $1 billion loss in 2007, the elimination of four vehicle lines and the idling of a number of Chrysler plants, mean less work for the Huntsville facility, Fadool said. "As Chrysler is resizing their business, they are reducing the number of vehicles they plan to sell and reduce their inventory levels by 100,000 vehicles, a 20 percent reduction," Fadool said. "That's a 12-to-16 percent reduction in our sales plan for 2008. "When they produce less vehicles, we sell less electronics." Quintin King, president of the United Auto Workers Local 1413, said the workers were aware of the problems faced by Chrysler, but the union was not informed until Wednesday that the cuts were coming. King said the union will work with Continental to reduce the number of job cuts, possibly by shifting some union workers into jobs currently held by contractors. Chrysler work represents about 85 percent of the Huntsville plant's operations. The facility and a related plant in Cummings Research Park were owned by Chrysler and employed 2,400 people before the purchase by Siemens in 2004. The Cummings Research Park site has been closed, and some production work was moved to Mexico by Siemens beginning in 2005. Fadool said the salaried job cuts will reach into most areas of the plant, with limited impact on research and development, which the company is continuing to push to attract new customers. The UAW's King said the laid-off workers won't get any severance pay, but will receive holiday pay, essentially additional days paid after their last day of work Dec. 21. King said a union employee assistance team has begun helping workers look for new jobs and contacted the local unemployment office. Fadool said he has also been in contact with the Huntsville-Madison County Chamber of Commerce, which has agreed to assist workers in finding new jobs. Mark Brown, the chamber's director of work force development, said he is optimistic Huntsville's strong job market means there are a number of opportunities for new workers. © 2007 The Huntsville Times © 2007 al.com All Rights Reserved.