EMD-CAT to Muncie IN

[mxdata]

Many people in the US are now back to earning what they did in the early 1990s, with their buying power eroded by twenty years of inflation, and the other option being no job at all. The situation in Muncie is not that unusual at all. Better paying jobs? They left Indiana along with the many bankrupt RV manufacturers and suppliers. Many in the European media refer to the current economic situation as a "depression". Viewed from that perspective any stable job is probably a good job, and EMD/Progress/CAT are paying a lot more than the companies that are now out of business.

MX

[MEC407]

From the London Free Press:

Caterpillar Inc. has been offered up to $11.1 million in U.S. government subsidies to train workers at the plant London workers fear may take their jobs.

But the U.S. industrial giant, with a history of labour strife, has had a hard time attracting and keeping workers as its Progress Rail plant in Muncie, Ind.

The company employs only about 150 people at the plant, when it promised 650 workers would be on the job this year.
...
Last October, Progress Rail had an open house at its Muncie plant, to herald its opening, with a locomotive on display. Only that locomotive was made in London and shipped to Muncie, said Tim Carrrie, president of the Canadian Auto Workers union, Local 27, that represents London EMD workers.

"The majority of the work was done here -- they just put finishing touches on it there. I know they have had a hard time keeping people. You will not get a decent welders for the wages they are paying," said Carrie. "It is a real skill."

Read more at: http://www.lfpress.com/news/london/2012 ... 63386.html

[Allen Hazen]

Journalists can be sloppy. The first line of the quotation from the article MEC407 posted talks about 11.1 million dollars of "U.S. government" support, which (to an American, at least-- I'm not sure what a Canadian reader would assume) implies FEDERAL government money. Follow the link to the article and you see further down that it is talking about 11.1 million dollars of state and local gov't money: money from governments in the U.S., but not from the U.S. government!
--
Larger matters:
------We should all thank MEC407 for digging up and posting news items about the locomotive business: he is one of the people who make Railroad.net the go-to place for up-to-date information on railroad matters!
------In particular, it seems to me that we should all be grateful for the scrupulous and scholarly manner in which he operates. Including links so we can find the relevant context for his summaries and the bits he quotes makes his posts much more valuable: it's like including references in a scholarly journal article, an absolutely central part of professional practice. Journalists can be sloppy, but I've never caught MEC407 being sloppy!
------If you are visiting London, Ontario, this might not be a good time to bring up the fact that you own shares in Caterpillar when taking to strangers.

[MEC407]

Journalists can be sloppy, but I've never caught MEC407 being sloppy!

You've never been with me to a Chinese restaurant. I somehow manage to get rice EVERYWHERE. It's a major lifelong problem. LOL

Seriously though, thank you for the kind words. I'm happy to do it. I find all this stuff fascinating, as I know you do as well, and I enjoy being able to share news and info with others.

Good advice about owning Cat shares. I wouldn't recommend wearing a Cat baseball cap or Cat work boots up there, either!

[MEC407]

From The Star Press:

MUNCIE -- Imagine a tightrope stretched between Muncie and Canada. Now imagine Mayor Dennis Tyler walking that tightrope, all the while juggling.

Tyler and other Muncie and Delaware County officials are wondering what to do regarding the possibility that a labor dispute and plant lockout in Canada might result in new locomotive contracts -- and new jobs -- for the Progress Rail plant on Muncie's southwest side.
...
Many of the stories call into question the viability of the Muncie plant. One EMD worker who spoke to The Star Press said one of the two locomotives unveiled at the Cowan Road plant in October was actually built at the EMD plant in Ontario. The allegation has been reported in Canadian newspapers and websites. The London Free Press reported last week that the Muncie plant "has not yet produced a locomotive."

Read more at: http://www.thestarpress.com/article/201 ... /201290331

[Tadman]

"Maybe the money went to GM's pocket" (in regard to the sale of LaGrange land)

Where else do you think it went? The tooth fairy?

That was what, 1989? The company went bankrupt a few years back, meaning they had no money left in their pocket. And guess what happened? The shareholders and bondholders got a big FU while the unions got 10 percent of the company. The shareholders, BTW, are insurance companies and retirement funds. In other words, the companies that save us (all of us, in any walk of life) from cancer and allow us to retire for a few years instead of working until we die.

[JayBee]

The Insurance companies and Retirement Funds would have sold their GM stock long before the end. For the last year or so GM stock was rated as junk, it was mainly speculators at the end who bought GM shares cheap and hoped they would muddle through. The Union workers took a big haircut in wages and their pension fund. The 10% is to get their skin in the game to save GM, rather than unemployment insurance. If GM failed again the Union workers would have lost their stake, a strike or lockout would have finished GM.

[MEC407]

From the The Star Press:

The job fair opened at 9 a.m. but a long line had formed even before that. One police officer said he had heard the first jobseekers had turned out at 4 a.m.

Turnout was so heavy -- estimated at more than 3,000 people in the first couple of hours -- that Progress Rail ended the job fair early, well before its scheduled 3 p.m. starting time.

Read more at: http://www.thestarpress.com/article/201 ... gress-Rail

[LondonJobs]

Enjoy the jobs, Muncie. They were jobs that CAT ripped out of London, Ontario by buying a former plant 18 months ago and closing it due to excessive costs.

[Jeff Smith]

Larger matters:
------We should all thank MEC407 for digging up and posting news items about the locomotive business: he is one of the people who make Railroad.net the go-to place for up-to-date information on railroad matters!
------In particular, it seems to me that we should all be grateful for the scrupulous and scholarly manner in which he operates. Including links so we can find the relevant context for his summaries and the bits he quotes makes his posts much more valuable: it's like including references in a scholarly journal article, an absolutely central part of professional practice. Journalists can be sloppy, but I've never caught MEC407 being sloppy!
------If you are visiting London, Ontario, this might not be a good time to bring up the fact that you own shares in Caterpillar when taking to strangers.

I'll second the first two motions! MEC is one of railroad.net's best moderators, along with Charlie and GoldenArm. I seldom have issues in their forums, and they moderate multiple forums.

Back to the topic; I saw this news item as well. While you hate to see any community lose jobs, at least they're still in North America.

[MEC407]

From The Star Press:

Overwhelmed by thousands of jobseekers this past Saturday, Progress Rail has announced another job fair for its Muncie locomotive plant.

The Alabama-based division of Caterpillar announced Tuesday it planned to have another job fair in Muncie on March 3. Progress Rail spokesman Barbara Cox said the location of the upcoming job fair would be announced.
...
In its announcement, Progress Rail cited the "overwhelming turnout of an estimated 4,000 applicants" at Saturday's job fair and noted that "the fair closed early as a result of the large pool of applicants in attendance."

Read more at: http://www.thestarpress.com/article/201 ... /202080322

[charlie6017]

Nice job, MEC! You are definitely a great asset in this forum and the entire site!

Jeff, thanks a bunch for your kind words as well!

Everyone here on the EMD board are super on here, thanks for all your contributions!

Charlie

[MEC407]

Thanks Charlie, Jeff, and Allen. Always happy to help!

[tv737]

Ed Holder, MP London West, delivered the following speech in the House of Commons regarding the EMD situation in Canada: (taken from Mr. Holder's website)

http://www.edholdermp.ca/Parliament/Spe ... 09-EMD.htm

[RickRackstop]

One thing he has wrong is that neither Winton Diesel or the original Electro Motive Corp. were Canadian companies or is Cleveland in Canada ? The only reason that the London Plant survived the original downsizing in favor of the LaGrange plant was that it was the smaller of the two.