Holden staff granted 22% pay rise.......

[Gobes32]

Story from here..........

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/business...-1226270419600

HOLDEN has signed a record pay deal that will see the income of its staff boosted by 22 per cent.

The 4000 employees will reap the full benefits by 2014 with an eight per cent rise in the first year, The Australian reports.

Union leaders have praised the deal describing it as "spectacular''.

The massive pay rises will come despite the carmaker lobbying the Federal Government for a taxpayer funded assistance package.

Holden jobs in Adelaide for casual and full-time staff in are at risk, it was
revealed recently.

[Gobes32]

The stupidity of this company never ceases to amaze me, I am always the first one to defend auto wages but geez, stories like this make it hard..........

[Joe5619]

f......, that is a very nice pay increase.. You'd think the car industry was on fire with stuff like this.

[Wretched]

nice pay rise but what is it going to cost in the long term?

[Smoke Pursuit]

"Spectacular" say the unions... Wonder if they will think its that "spectacular" when Holden shuts up shop and goes broke. With that 22% increase comes extra superannuation entitlements, payroll tax etc etc. I cannot see how they will sustain it.

[Brazen]

I think they had pay freezes during the GFC on the proviso they would make some of it up when the economy improves.

[Hally]

And what the article doesn't tell is what the unions have let Holden off the hook for, which has the potential to save the company significant sums of money.

[Kryton]

Originally Posted by DASH GT

"Spectacular" say the unions... Wonder if they will think its that "spectacular" when Holden shuts up shop and goes broke. With that 22% increase comes extra superannuation entitlements, payroll tax etc etc. I cannot see how they will sustain it.

Exactly right.
The last big supper before the doors are shut.
And now they can blame the cost of wages when they do shut up shop.

[mik]

it might not be all that good, , what have they been earning ?, they may have been on peasant wages for years to keep keep their jobs and the plant open, also have`nt they sacked a heap of people? some of these people might be doing the work of 2.

[Angeldust]

my guess is they wre on reduced wages/pay rises anyway. this just brings them back in line with other industries.

[Scott]

Taken straight from the Helenic Book of Financial Planning.

Have all the shifts been reinstated? Or are they simply closing the gap between what they had and what they have without going full bottle?

[JPFS1]

22% rise after a 40% cut over the last few years?

[leighm]

Any way you look at it, Falcon and Commodore as unique cars to our market are unsustainable in this global market with a population as small as ours.

The inevitable needs to happen to Ford and Holden. Just look at Toyota Australia, they are sacking workers even though they are building cars here that are designed overseas, but they are still laying off workers. You can bet workers in Thailand did not receive a 22% pay increase this year.

[Professor Farnsworth]

Originally Posted by Brazen

I think they had pay freezes during the GFC on the proviso they would make some of it up when the economy improves.

but it hasn't improved, at all.. in fact it's got worse.

bizarre move to say the least.

[Gobes32]

Originally Posted by mik

it might not be all that good, , what have they been earning ?, they may have been on peasant wages for years to keep keep their jobs and the plant open, also have`nt they sacked a heap of people? some of these people might be doing the work of 2.

Anyone know Holden's wages, a Ford production worker is on $51k a year, although down days in the last few years have reduced that a little bit. $30 pay rise in the last three years is all they have received. EBA is up for negotiation this year too.

[b0son]

hmmm... 5 years of losses, a year of dubious profit (wasnt most of it courtesy of taxpayer funding?) ... wouldnt be the first time a union pushed for a short-term gain

[Chilliman]

...and so begins the death spiral. Higher wages, more layoffs, expected increased productivity from those who remain, union pushes for higher wages, more layoffs, expected increased productivity from those who remain, union pushes for higher wages, ....and so it goes on until GM shuts the doors.

[Redrum]

22% over how many years? Inflation is around 3.6% nationally and I think this is understated. With the world economies failing and JuLIAR's carbon tax coming inflation will rise, maybe hyper inflation.

[johnydep]

Originally Posted by Gobes32

The stupidity of this company never ceases to amaze me, I am always the first one to defend auto wages but geez, stories like this make it hard..........

Damned if you do, damned if you don't.

Has the process got anything to do with the new industrial regulations?

[DoreSlamR]

I too find it odd for Holden to give such a pay rise in these times, especially after asking for more government hand outs...does that mean us the tax payers are now paying the wages of Holden employees? lol

But seriously, without knowing all of the details of this we should be happy for the employees, they've roughed it out with the rest of us and if Holden believe they can handle it, then they can.

Most struggling companies will do the opposite.

So until it's proven that the Holden powers that be have lost their mind we should take this as a positive sign.

[johnydep]

Originally Posted by Chilliman

...and so begins the death spiral. Higher wages, more layoffs, expected increased productivity from those who remain, union pushes for higher wages, more layoffs, expected increased productivity from those who remain, union pushes for higher wages, ....and so it goes on until GM shuts the doors.

The business environment is starting to look very worrying.

Small businesses are receiving letters from Government departments and Unions - laying the ground work for new charges and rules.

I had a visit from a State Gov authority; spent 5 minutes checking and charged $99.75

The business properties council rates increased 5x higher than inflation, water rates, electricity, etc have all increased at rates higher than inflation. These charges have to be added on, and they will increase inflation.

Wages need to go up to cover the costs of Government charges, and increased living expenses.

Don't blame the business.

Blame the Governments and their cronies.

[robbo/region15]

Meanwhile Ford Broady have released there Calender for March '12 with 4 of the 5 Fridays as days off.......

[BHDOGS]

My mate who works at holdens driving a fork lift gets about 50 grand a year

[Jim Goose]

Reading the ABCs site... its says its 18%... and it hasnt been signed off yet and yes apparently there hasnt been any pay rises in a while by the looks.

Unions happy with proposed Holden wage deal

Updated February 14, 2012 10:54:17
Unions happy with proposed Holden pay deal Photo: The Holden pay deal is expected to be finalised by the end of the month. (Giulio Saggin: ABC News)
Map: Port Melbourne 3207

Holden says it is yet to sign off on a deal which could see workers receive an 18 per cent pay increase over the next three years, but a final decision is expected by the end of the month.

The Australian Manufacturing Workers Union (AMWU) has confirmed the pending agreement, saying it includes an annual three per cent wage rise, and $1,700 bonuses for workers disadvantaged during the global financial crisis.

The AMWU's national secretary Dave Oliver says the unions and the company have been working constructively over the years to negotiate the deal.

He says many workers made significant sacrifices during the global financial crisis.

"For that, we were able to save jobs and the company is still going," he said.

Mr Oliver says the union supports the deal and will be recommending it to its members.

"A 3 per cent wage increase which will keep up with CPI (Consumer Price Index), but the bonus is in recognition of the hardship the workers had endured and will go a bit of a way to compensate those workers," he said.

"Yes, we are negotiating agreements from the tail end of a bargaining round right across the manufacturing sector and the deal that's been achieved with Holden is on par or maybe slightly below what we've been getting across the industry."

Mr Oliver says cutting wages does not save jobs.

"The reason why we've seen the decline of jobs in the industry is purely because of the fact that we've seen a decline in sales," he said.

He says it is a reasonable deal in light of the circumstances.

Holden says it is not in a position to comment on the enterprise bargaining agreements (EBAs) until they are ratified.

In a statement released a short time ago, Holden said it was confident the EBA's will show that it has created a pay structure that rewards all employees, as well as efficiency, quality and profitability improvements.

[350125GO]

Laughable that people are blaming the death of the auto industry on the unions...

[johnydep]

Originally Posted by 350125GO

Laughable that people are blaming the death of the auto industry on the unions...

Your right, see here http://www.fordforums.com.au/showthr...89#post4127389

[trippytaka]

I read some very interesting articles on the death of American auto manufacturing when the big 4 were filing for bankruptcy - based mainly on the cost per car of manufacture, compared with other countries.

I'm not going to comment on unions and the role they play because there are clearly two different sides to the story. I just wish we could meet somewhere in the middle.

[csv8]

And NSW ,Victorian and Queensland nurses cann't get a pay rise !!! something is out of wack??? NSW and Victorian Governments are trying to reduce nurses !!!! but good on Holden workers for the pay rise..Holden cars will go up in price.

[Gobes32]

One last question, what is the average manufacturing wage? I am not after the average wage because that includes hospitality at $5 an hour and lawyers at $400 an hour, what is the average wage in manufacturing?

[prydey]

HOLDEN has struck a new wage deal guaranteeing most of its 4000 workers a pay rise of at least 18.3 per cent by 2014.


The Australian reports there is potential for this to rise up to 22.3 per cent more by the end of the agreement, hailed by the automotive union as "the best deal yet to be negotiated" in the industry.
The report says all workers will earn the equivalent of eight percent more in wages and bonuses in the first year, and a "hardship recognition payment" of $1750 (and $1000 in successive years).

This was to recognise their sacrifices during the global financial crisis, when shifts were scaled back.

The move follows the company's announcement earlier this month that it would cut about 100 casual and part-time jobs from the assembly line at its Elizabeth plant.

Premier Jay Weatherill recently met Holden bosses during a visit to General Motors in Detroit to discuss the company's future at Elizabeth after 2016.

The state and federal governments are considering an assistance package put forward by the company and there is speculation it could cost taxpayers up to $200 million to secure Holden's long-term future in Australia.

so holden lay off some workers, give the remaining a decent payrise, and then hold their hand out for financial assistance. no wonder the general public don't like the auto industry.

Originally Posted by 350125GO

Laughable that people are blaming the death of the auto industry on the unions...

really? would holden be in this position WITHOUT what the unions put them through?