European metal unions have slammed as “complete nonsense” mooted plans by automakers to slash production capacity given what they insist is a lack of a coherent industrial policy.
A surge of rumours appears to point towards European manufacturers taking an axe to massive over-capacity against a backdrop of declining disposable income and huge uncertainty in the troubled economies of southern Europe.
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The spotlight has fallen in particular on General Motors’ struggling Vauxhall/Opel division, as well as Fiat, but the European Metalworkers Federation (EMF), which last night (26 March) added its signature refusing to negotiate on any local restructuring, has lambasted auto manufacturing policy in general.
“Now as the manufacturers seem to realise the outlook to get back to 2007 production levels by 2014 seems less realistic, they are looking for a plan to reduce capacity,” EMF policy adviser Wolf Jacklein told just-auto in his Brussels headquarters.
“I think it would be complete nonsense to reduce this capacity and that is short-sighted, short-term financial politics. It is not industrial policy – the lessons we should have learned from the 2009 crisis were not learned at all. You cannot base an industry on growth, because there won’t be any.”
The EMF adviser said the OEMs were happy enough to take what he said was funding from the European Investment Bank to finance a significant expansion of production sites even when over-capacity was starting to worry national governments.
“On the one hand, you talk about over-capacity and at the same time, you use public money to open new factories,” said Jacklein. “We always thought that was nonsense.
“We have to adapt the industry to 21st century demand – the industry does not do that.”
