Empty threat? “Harley-Davidson seeks to close large cost gaps in its Milwaukee-area and Tomahawk production operations, and improve flexibility to meet seasonal and other customer-driven production needs,” Harley-Davidson said in a statement. If Harley-Davidson is unable to achieve those objectives through agreement with the unions by mid-September 2010, the company has said it will move Wisconsin production operations to another location in the United States.Zero Motorcycles, the global leader in the electric motorcycle industry, was recently awarded a U.S. patent for the revolutionary battery interconnect system used to power its line of motorcycles. First integrated into production models as early as 2006, this interconnect system is low-resistance, flexible and rugged. The patented technology allows Zero to create high power density packs that operate at maximum efficiency under extreme loads with passive air-cooling. This new technology marks a milestone in electric motorcycle innovation because it enables the Z-Force power pack to withstand years of vibration and impacts due to highly demanding conditions. Zero Motorcycles
Harley-Davidson FXDF Recall. Harley-Davidson issued a recall notice on certain model 2010 FXDF motorcycles with fork leg assemblies manufactured from February 9 through February 29, 2010. The fork leg assemblies may have been incorrectly assembled using the wrong springs and as a result the motorcycles containing the wrong springs will have reduced effectiveness which can cause reduced traction on irregular road surfaces and will also create an irregular lean angle when parked on the side stand.
Empty threat? “Harley-Davidson
Do what has to be done.
Accomplish what is best for the company and move on. Many have expressed a need for a new Motor Company.
Maybe a move would be beneficial to all by moving and leaving those of the of old hierarchy behind in Wisconsin with the stale cheese. LOL
I personally “at this point” stand behind the new management and believe that the golf course is a beneficial place to air out the future even though I can’t hit a ball if it were on a Tee, not my cup of Tea Move South !
Maybe they should move to Florida with their 12% unemployment rate and good golf year round. or Houston
I see a man with a lot of balls making the calls and he is keeping the Mo Co out of the rough.
Sometimes with our emotions we get carried away when an outsider steps in to an area where one believes only the purist should be and as we have seen, the purist didn’t do their job.
The Motor company was poorly managed, quick money created a sugar coating.
Now corrections are being made and the feel good is gone.
Looks like HD is going to cut away the fat they aquired during the baby boomer craze starting in the 1990’s to about 2005, and now attempting to get back to normalcy.
I am so sick of companies that cry poverty, there is never enough profit for these people. Corporate income. In 1970, CEO salary and bonus packages were typically about $700,000 – 25 times the average production worker salary; by 2000, CEO salaries had jumped to almost $2.2 million on average, 90 times the average salary of a worker, according to a 2004 study on CEO pay by Kevin J. Murphy and Jan Zabojnik. Toss in stock options and other benefits, and the salary of a CEO is nearly 500 times the average worker salary, the study says. Now add in all the other top execs and you get the picture. Its always about raping the worker. Harley sells some of these bikes for the price of a freakin BMW car for christ sake and its never enough. If Harley leaves Milwaukee it will be another AMF moment.
It doesn’t matter if Harley gets the give backs from the union or not. They will first ask for incentives (tax breaks) from the cities and then the state. When they get them they will start building a new plant with all the money they will be saving, where they intended to move in the first place. What I’m saying they are going to move anyway.
Sounds to me like India and Mexico are going to get more than dealers. I don’t think it will be long. Last time I checked Victory was one step ahead in Mexico.
Dealerships are being told they have to take on $100,000 complete inventory apparel lines – bikini’s in Canada and full heavy leathers in Florida. I’m with what is being said by Launchme (above) about greed driven corporations. Let the CEOs and other executives take the cuts FIRST before cutting out the American worker.
Which is worse? Wealth envy or the unions that cause so many problems?
Let the free market work it out. If the CEO and other officers are making too much eventually the company will fail. If the worked does not do a good enough job customers will stop buying the product causing company failure.
The unions have done far more bad than good to industry in our country. If people don’t like what they get paid they should go work somewhere else. No one is forcing them to be a production worker.
Some people that haven’t tried as hard in life cry like babies because the CEO makes 25 times more than them. Chances are the whiner could not handle the job of the CEO or they would have went for that position instead of a position on the factory floor.
I never got hired for a job by a poor or unsuccessful person. I have always tried to get hired by wealthy successful people because they are obviously doing something right.
It would be a great move for HD if they moved out of union organized states. They should move south to a non-union state. Maybe the bikes and parts prices would come down.
HD management is looking at ” New World ” and trying to negotiate a competative enviroment for the future..
All American companies are now or will do the same thing..
As of their last press replease, Polaris is moving some of their ATV, etc production to Mexico. However none of the Victory production. That will now occur in Iowa. It would kill the brand to move it to Mexico. Even their bean counters could see that.
Vrodder
RE:
As of their last press replease, Polaris is moving some of their ATV, etc production to Mexico. However none of the Victory production. That will now occur in Iowa. It would kill the brand to move it to Mexico. Even their bean counters could see that.
Vrodder
Vrodder,
When talking about Mexico, please don’t say “bean counter”.
Thank you
So the new HD president, who made over $6,000,000 in 2009 for only working part of the year, wants concessions from people making less than 1% of what he makes.
Of course, he is worth it; who else would have the brilliant vision to get rid of Buell ?
Moving to another state, or country, won’t cure all their problems,
as long as they keep the same mind set at the upper level.
When times get tough, the Fat Cats always want someone else to accept less.
RE:
“…the new HD president, who made over $6,000,000 in 2009 …”
Where is the outrage form the stock holders…. ????
As i see it, people holding HD stock are the on ones with a legitimate beef.
(those who bought stock before the compensation package went berserk)
-nicker-
Good point, nicker, and exactly why Warren Buffett won’t touch the common stock himself, but continues to own and lick his chops over the 15% coupon bonds he bought from Harley- he knows poor management when he sees it…..