Green Machines Road Trip

34,000 Jobs for Michigan

We finally made it back home to Michigan, and spent today meeting with UAW leadership up at Region 1C in Lansing.  Members up there are real excited about the new assembly plant in Delta Township that builds GM’s crossovers: the Saturn Outlook, GMC Acadia and Buick Enclave.

Watch video clips of our interviews with Region 1C Director Duane Zuckschwerdt and other UAW leaders!

The new plant and vehicles in it are really a success story for the region. Doug Rademacher, President of UAW Local 602 informed us that they’re the biggest vehicles on the road that achieve 25 mpg.  They have all the bells and whistles of a BMW SUV, but they seat more people (8 max), get higher fuel economy, and are $20,000-$30,000 cheaper. As Doug said, “What more could you ask for?”

From our end, we were especially interested to learn about all the advanced technology in the crossovers and where it’s coming from. 

Green Manufacturing in Ohio

This morning we were in Toledo, Ohio, meeting with Lloyd Mahaffey, Director of UAW Region 2B.  Lloyd told us about initiatives in Ohio that are aimed at generating jobs in the green manufacturing sector, and mentioned some really innovative ideas.  He talked about a landfill located adjacent to Chrysler’s Jeep plant in Toledo that is burning methane.  He envisions producing ethanol from the methane and using it to fuel Jeeps as they come of the line.  With the Jeep plant producing 300,000 Jeeps per year and filling them with 10 gallons of fuel each, that’s a lot of ethanol that would create a bunch of jobs in the neighborhood.  He also envisions using geo-thermal or wind energy to help power a plant in Maumee that is scheduled to shut down.  That technology could significantly reduce energy costs at the plant and might make the facility more desirable to potential investors. 

We also talked to Lloyd about a Ford Transmission plant in Sharonville that is producing advanced six-speeds that help save fuel.  Ford is looking to expand production, since the new transmissions are being used in so many of the company’s new and upcoming models.  Mexico offered Ford $90 million in incentives to build the transmission there. Lloyd is hoping that the newly elected officials in Ohio and Congress will step up and make an effort to attract those kinds of green manufacturing jobs by offering similar incentives.

With energy and global warming becoming increasingly important economic and political issues, we were thrilled to see a leader like Lloyd with so many innovate ideas and taking real initiative to move things forward.  And, were also pleased to see him take action by signing our pledge.

Crossovers Bring Jobs to Belvidere, IL

We made our way back to Illinois today, and stopped off this morning in Belvidere to meet Mr. Thomas Littlejohn, President of UAW Local 1268.  Before we got there we thought we already knew the story about Belvidere’s newly renovated assembly plant, but it turns out there was even more good news there than we had thought.

Watch video clips of our interviews with President Littlejohn and other UAW leaders!

DaimlerChrysler’s Belvidere Assembly plant makes three new crossover vehicles: the Dodge Caliber, the Jeep Compass, and as of this month, the Jeep Patriot.  All three come with continuously variable transmissions (which save fuel and provide a smoother ride than conventional 4, 5 or 6-speed transmissions) and efficient engines with dual-variable valve timing  (that are built by UAW Local 723 in Dundee, MI).  These advanced technologies make all three vehicles capable of 30 mpg.

We had heard that Chrysler created a bunch of jobs at the plant when they renovated to build the new crossovers last year, but didn’t know all the details.  We found out today that union employment at the plant went from 1700 before the renovations to 3600 after.  In addition, we also found out that an entire supplier park was created in the surrounding neighborhoods and now employs 2900 workers, all of whom have been organized in the past year.  That’s 4800 new jobs in the Belvidere area – what an enormous impact that must have on the local economy!  And that’s only the direct manufacturing jobs; there must also be thousands of new in-direct jobs, for example at local diners and construction companies.

President Littlejohn also mentioned that the state played a big role in enticing DaimlerChrysler to re-invest in the plant by offering millions in tax incentives.  He said Governor Blagojevich and the local government have been some of the UAW’s strongest allies in the region.  If state policies made such a big difference in Illinois, imagine what federal policies could! 

Take Action! Tell Congress to encourage more investments like this one!

For more information on these crossovers , visit the Dodge Caliber, Jeep Compass and Jeep Patriot websites.

Saving the Ford Twin Cities Plant

Today we officially kicked off the Green Machines Road Trip at the Ford Twin Cities plant here in St. Paul. UAW Local 879 is hosting a Labor and Sustainability Conference focused on the climate crisis and worker-friendly strategies for addressing it.  The local represents retirees and about 1800 workers at the Ford plant, half of whom have just taken buy-outs from Ford, and the rest of whom will be laid off or transferred when the plant shuts down next year.

Right now workers here build the Ford Ranger, a small pick-up truck that hasn’t been re-designed in over a decade (yes, a decade!)--but they won’t be for long. They had been expecting an announcement about the shut down for some time, considering that the vehicle and the plant had not received any investments for so long. They finally received it on April 13 last year.

Chatting with UAW Region 4 in Illinois

On our way up to St. Paul, we made a quick stop yesterday afternoon just north of Chicago to chat with Dennis Williams, Director of UAW Region 4. Brother Dennis’ region covers a large portion of the Midwest, including members that work at auto plants that we plan to visit in Illinois, Wisconsin and Minnesota.

Mr. Williams has been working closely with policy makers throughout his region who are promoting advanced auto technologies and biofuels. He spoke to us about new legislative activities, the closing of Ford’s Twin Cities plant in St. Paul, and some new eco-technologies being built in his region. Check it out!