DaimlerChrysler Strike

It seems that the murmuring drumbeat threatening to cut jobs and to move industries outside the country is not a uniquely American phenomenon. According to this report, DaimlerChrysler is trying to cut labor costs and have threatened to move some of their Mercedes production to cheaper locations, most notably South Africa. The company is asking the unions to agree to 500 million euros in economy measures and threatened to cut as many as 6,000 jobs. Undeterred, 14,500 workers took part in stoppages at two Mercedes plants in Southwest Germany and more than 60,000 workers took part in a national day of protest causing stoppages around the country on Thursday. One specific concession the company wants is for the workers to give up a five-minute paid break time they accumulate for each hour worked. By my math, DaimlerChrysler would see an immediate 8% increase in productivity. However, it appears the workers aren't listening to the drumbeat.

The effort by DaimlerChrysler follows last month's success by electronics and engineering giant Siemens AG who won concessions from the unions on working hours by threatening to move 2,000 jobs to Hungary. We'll have to wait and see whether DaimlerChrysler is similarly successful or if they will have to follow through on their threat.