Ford Is Improving, at least Monetarily
FORD
Fix Or Repair Daily
Found On Road Dead
I live in Chevy country, though I personally drive a Ford Taurus, and GM seems to have a definite upper hand here. You do see some Fords and Chryslers, as well as Toyotas, but (at a glimpse) three out of four cars in this area appear to GM. The GM plants are nearby and virtually everyone knows several people who work for GM, in spite of the cutbacks.
The locals may joke about what the letters of Ford mean but Ford is turning out to be more than just a joke. In spite of economic concerns, Ford has turned the corner and, while it is not clearly in the profitable column, its condition is far better than was anticipated a year ago.
While profit and loss statements do not always reflect on the employment situation, a company that is in the black is far more likely to create jobs than one that is in the red. What I do notice though is that in spite of the huge difference in profit/loss, the 3rd quarter of 07 was only a little more than 10% above the 3rd quarter for 06.
Equally important is the UAW contract that Ford has negotiated appears to be poised for passing, quite handily. What is significant about this one is that now the Employees' healthcare is now the responsibility of the UAW. I am very curious about how that is going to work out and what will change because of it. I guess time will tell. I think having to administer a healthcare plan will be a hard lesson in reality for the unions. I wonder if the UAW would like to take responsibility for pensions too, kind of like the Teamsters did. (I'll pass and do my own thank you.)
Fix Or Repair Daily
Found On Road Dead
I live in Chevy country, though I personally drive a Ford Taurus, and GM seems to have a definite upper hand here. You do see some Fords and Chryslers, as well as Toyotas, but (at a glimpse) three out of four cars in this area appear to GM. The GM plants are nearby and virtually everyone knows several people who work for GM, in spite of the cutbacks.
The locals may joke about what the letters of Ford mean but Ford is turning out to be more than just a joke. In spite of economic concerns, Ford has turned the corner and, while it is not clearly in the profitable column, its condition is far better than was anticipated a year ago.
While profit and loss statements do not always reflect on the employment situation, a company that is in the black is far more likely to create jobs than one that is in the red. What I do notice though is that in spite of the huge difference in profit/loss, the 3rd quarter of 07 was only a little more than 10% above the 3rd quarter for 06.
Equally important is the UAW contract that Ford has negotiated appears to be poised for passing, quite handily. What is significant about this one is that now the Employees' healthcare is now the responsibility of the UAW. I am very curious about how that is going to work out and what will change because of it. I guess time will tell. I think having to administer a healthcare plan will be a hard lesson in reality for the unions. I wonder if the UAW would like to take responsibility for pensions too, kind of like the Teamsters did. (I'll pass and do my own thank you.)
posted by shoprat at 5:27 PM
6 Comments:
That is fantastic -- that the UAW will be administering member health plans. Let's see if they're as affordable and employee friendly as they would have a union-staffed company's health plans be.
I think you're smart taking control of your own health care plans, Shoprat.
I've driven Fords for ages. Glad to see they're doing better. I'm thinking the UAW is going to have their hands full with those health plans.
Did you know that 90% of all Fords built are still on the road? At least 10% made it home.
BZ
I'm still using my father-in-law's '78 Ford F-150 as my farm turck ... and althought it can be a pain-in-the-butt to get started, and is a gas hog ... it is still running and hauling ...
Not sure I'd buy a new Ford though ... quality is still an issue with me.
I, too, am very pensively watching to see what the result of the UAW taking over the health care plans will be. Now that the company will not be the administrator, will the "you can have anything you want, anytime, anywhere" attitude still fly? I have a feeling that time will tell ... and more quickly than we imagine. I have yet to see a business, that was bought or resurrected by a union, be as profitable or enduring as private industry. Up our way, I don't see a whole lot of happy sugar beet growers ... even though they supposedly own the company now. It's funny how the attitudes change when it's no longer them vs. us ... and finding out that there are business uncertantites, and costs that were never understood before.
Bought an 06 4WD Escape a few months ago and love it! Solid, tight, and respondsive. A Mazda drivetrain assembled in Kansas City. Much better than all the other mini SUV's we tried, and the 6 cyl. engine gets 26 mpg!
Way to go, Ford. And Mercury, which makes the Escape as the Mariner.
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