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Ford shifting all U.S. small-car production to Mexico

brothern said:
Even if it wasn't outsourced, it'd have happened inevitably with looming improvements in automation.
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Even with automation, there are still tons of jobs that surround having the actual means of production in your country. You still have construction jobs to build the site; Engineering jobs to make the automated machines; jobs to maintenance the site; transportation jobs to move product into and out of the site; infrastructure development for things like feeding it power, road access, utilities; tangentially related jobs to service all those who want to purchase needs or wants with their paychecks.

None of that happens with it's being done overseas.
 
Groogrux said:
Maybe they can take all the illegal immigrants from Mexico with them and give them jobs.
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Pretty soon it'll be the Democrats who want to build the wall....just to the Mexicans here.
 
Its only fair. mejico invested all that money to save the American auto industry.
 
MaggieD said:
Good. Maybe it'll keep some illegals immigrants in their OWN country.

Actually, though, they'll move right back, won't they? They won't be competitive anymore. You know, they have to pay the large import fee if they do that. Oh, wait . . .
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There may be some advantage for Mexican workers who have been working in the US, better language skills,
and perhaps a better understanding of process control and quality assurance.
 
No surprise.

Probably a smart move on Ford's part.

Production costs are far cheaper in Mexico...and small cars have a far smaller profit margin so production costs affect them more then other vehicles.

If the national minimum wage goes to $15 you can expect a LOT more jobs to go abroad as it's effects ripple upward through the pay scale.

Sucks for those Americans that will lose their jobs though.
 
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radcen said:
This might be a little simplistic, but I believe that's because foreign car makers aren't burdened by outdated union contracts.
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Why do you think they stayed away from the north?
There was a reason for it.
 
apdst said:
The private sector has no choice but to flee the counterproductive policies of the current regime.
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I don't know I would call it a "regime", but it is quite obvious that for manufacturing this has happend to an extended degree.
 
iguanaman said:
Paying Mexican wages won't make Detroit better. Ford still builds it larger more expensive models in America and has committed to it in the future. There is nothing wrong with making cheaper cars where labor costs are less. Meanwhile it is increasing wages for its American workers.
America needs to pursue "value added" jobs and products and not compete in the race to the bottom.
Ford to Move Hundreds of Entry-Level Workers to Higher Pay Rate - WSJ
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Each product has its own set of calculations and circumstances attached and I am fine with the outsourcing. But it is leading to miscreants popularizing dropping free trade, because their flock does not understand the complexity and the trade agreement is a simplification that the flock members can see like a flag on the battlefield. But that flag is not, where the fight should be. Free trade is the motor that keeps us running.
 
joG said:
Each product has its own set of calculations and circumstances attached and I am fine with the outsourcing. But it is leading to miscreants popularizing dropping free trade, because their flock does not understand the complexity and the trade agreement is a simplification that the flock members can see like a flag on the battlefield. But that flag is not, where the fight should be. Free trade is the motor that keeps us running.
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The pollution form all those motors used to move stuff around the globe a few times before products are finally in customers greedy little hands for a short amount of time before the stuff goes to the landfill is mucking up the planet, jsyk.

:moody
 
If all the girls you ask to the prom go with some other guy, do you blame the guys or do you, at some point, say maybe I'm doing something wrong.
 
Ikari said:
The UAW was writing our trade policies!!??
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Not to argue, but the UAW does have considerable influence on the politics of trade policy. They don't write laws, but they have the influence & very deep pockets.
 
Patrickt said:
If all the girls you ask to the prom go with some other guy, do you blame the guys or do you, at some point, say maybe I'm doing something wrong.
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Or maybe our traitorous leaders(this is just a theory mind you) have given so much away to get the global economy up and running that the American worker is doomed to a falling standard of living as far as the eye can see.

I say we have a huge debate about what has gone wrong, who if anyone is to blame, and what we should do about it(on both accounts).
 
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DaveFagan said:
The status quo of big energy prevents total implementation/commitment to Renewable Energy solutions to preserve our Planet's future.
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No... renewables cannot replace current energy because they are INCAPABLE of providing the readily available and useable energy conventional means today do. I do agree that Unions caused much of Detroit's problems
 
Renae said:
No... renewables cannot replace current energy because they are INCAPABLE of providing the readily available and useable energy conventional means today do. I do agree that Unions caused much of Detroit's problems
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Crap management building crap cars and signing crap labor agreements had something to do with it too.
 
Renae said:
No... renewables cannot replace current energy because they are INCAPABLE of providing the readily available and useable energy conventional means today do. I do agree that Unions caused much of Detroit's problems
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Renewables with storage can replace 100% of today's energy needs. The status quo of Big Energy Distribution is the political force that prevents the change and also is the group that promotes the fallacy that Renewables cannot replace Distributed energies. Renewables lead to localized energy generation and that is the Big Energy fear. Those drug supply lines a/k/a, gas and electricity pipes and wires are maintaining the profit stream. It was a wonderful system when it began and an atrocity in this age.
 
Hawkeye10 said:
Crap management building crap cars and signing crap labor agreements had something to do with it too.
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It may also be that Ford sells the astoundingly successful F-150 and measure all other vehicle profits against that.
 
La calidad es el trabajo uno.
 
apdst said:
We need to change policies to encourage companies to stay here.
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That is unlikely to happen. Tiny IC cars are not very profitable no matter where they are made but they do help to meet the CAFE mess that is unlikely to go away. If CAFE policy will not let you stop making low (or no) profit tiny cars then making them elsewhere is a decent alternative. It probably will not be long before electric tiny cars (aka fancier golf carts) will dominate that market.
 
RetiredUSN said:
Not to argue, but the UAW does have considerable influence on the politics of trade policy. They don't write laws, but they have the influence & very deep pockets.
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I see...and they're writing all the policies....or influencing all the policies, which makes it easier to offshore jobs, yes? That's what's going on here? Poor UAW....should have thought about what they were asking government for, huh?
 
RetiredUSN said:
Not to argue, but the UAW does have considerable influence on the politics of trade policy. They don't write laws, but they have the influence & very deep pockets.
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Sometimes, lobbying organizations actually do write the text of laws, wholly and/or partially, but the legislator still has to be the one to put their name on it.
 
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