635 Toledo Jeep Workers Accept Buyouts : New Jeep new car review 2008

635 Toledo Jeep Workers Accept Buyouts : New Jeep new car review 2008
by Anthony Fontanelle
At least 635 workers at Toledo Jeep Assembly have accepted buyout offers from Chrysler LLC. This means no full-time workers will be laid off as the third shift making the Jeep Liberty and Dodge Nitro ends Monday.In October, the Auburn Hills automaker said that it plans to get rid of the night shift because of the declining sales of the Liberty and the Nitro. The announcement would result to the slashing of 780 jobs. The anticipated job cuts were part of the 10,000 and other cuts made by the automaker across the nation.But with the workers' acceptance of the buyouts and with the furlough of about 100 temporary workers, 45 or so workers will be retained to fill in for other employees on sick leave or vacation, said Dan Henneman, Jeep's United Auto Workers Local 12 official.The number taking buyouts means that "we don't anticipate anyone being laid off," Henneman. "The company was forecasting that only 200 would take the buyout, so this is great for us. Workers who would have been laid off will be trained to take over for those leaving as part of the buyout."This week, the production lines used to assemble Dodge and Jeep doors and other auto parts for the Nitro and Liberty have been idled as part of the announced shutdown and job cuts last fall. Next week, the scheduled return of workers, training will start to allow those taking the buyouts to leave by the end of this month and March, reported Toledo Blade.Chrysler is in the process of proving its true worth now that it is going solo. But challenges are testing its courage and commitment. In North America, the sales for the Liberty dived 31 percent in 2007 to 92,105 units, and Nitro sales of 74,825 units were fewer than the company predicted.Many Jeep workers had postponed plans to retire while waiting for the national UAW contract with Chrysler. The incentives offered have generally provided approximately $70,000 buyout. However, it can increase to $100,000."We're one of the older work forces in the business," Henneman noted. "A lot of people were holding out."This week, Chrysler announced buyout offers to 14,000 workers in the Detroit area. However, the 1,300 workers at Chrysler's Toledo Machining plant in Perrysburg Township have not been offered buyout packages, but will be soon, Chrysler spokesman Michelle Tinson said. She was earlier quoted as saying they had received buyout offers.