[TT C6]

Holden announces 500 job cuts

Holden announces 500 job cuts




By Michael Harley RSS feed Google+
Posted Apr 9th 2013 8:00AM

21

Comments34



Nearly 500 employees of Holden, GM's Australian outpost, will be without jobs as the company adjusts to the high dollar, fierce competition from foreign rivals and lagging Commodore (shown above) and Cruze sales. In 2005, Holden sold 66,794 Commodore models. But that number plummeted to just 30,532 units last calendar year, prompting the automaker to lay off 170 workers just five months ago. With this latest round, about 100 jobs will be cut in its Melbourne product development facility and another 400 will be slashed at its Elizabeth plant, in South Australia, as the company slows production from 400 units to 335 units per day.

The Australian government has invested more than $2.2 billion ($2.29 billion US dollars) of its own funds to help Holden over the years, and there are future subsidies on the line, but many are questioning the investments. When Holden managing director Mike Devereux was asked about the brand's future, he was far from optimistic. "I cannot predict the future... I can't control what central banks do ... I cannot control the value of other currencies that we compete with and I cannot predict what that will do to our business.''

 

[GTO_Guy]

Too bad. They build better GM cars than GM does.

 

[jat63]

holden is doing what has to be done before they have a stockpile of cars like ford, ford did not cut production in time and ended up with thousands of cars in paddocks all over the country, in the end they had to cut even harder to clear grass stock, way to many cars sitting on grass waiting of a spot on the showroom floor and exposed to the elements, it took a bad hail storm across melbourns north to convince them, tens of thousands of cars were damaged that afternoon.

 

[American-Muscle]

holden is doing what has to be done before they have a stockpile of cars like ford, ford did not cut production in time and ended up with thousands of cars in paddocks all over the country, in the end they had to cut even harder to clear grass stock, way to many cars sitting on grass waiting of a spot on the showroom floor and exposed to the elements, it took a bad hail storm across melbourns north to convince them, tens of thousands of cars were damaged that afternoon.

Makes sense to me. I guess we can praise them for being more conservative then, cutting their losses. Sucks that 500 people will lose their job, working for a great company, but it has to be done.

Another news report said this Holden job cut will not change production of the Chevrolet SS and VF Commodore, hopefully it stays like that.

Speaking about production of these cars, it'd be cool if they show us the Chevy SS/VF Commodore factory.

 

[jat63]

part 1

part 2

part 3

part 4

part 5

part 6

 

[GTO_Guy]

Loved that! Thanks for posting.