Belfast Visteon Sitdowners Win Better Deal As Auto Sector Turmoil Ripples Around The Globe

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.laborradio.org/node/11141

The growing crisis of the auto sector is having ripple effects around the globe. Jesse Russell reports:

Workers who occupied their former factory for seven weeks walked out on Monday with one bitter sweet victory under their belts, but another battle on the horizon. More than 200 former workers at a Visteon car parts plant in Belfast have been occupying the plant since they were told the plant would be closed seven weeks ago. The workers demanded a better redundancy deal from the company before they would leave the plant. The Belfast plant was one of three closed in the UK with workers being given less than an hour’s notice that they were out of jobs. The workers accepted a better plan and on Monday left the plant two-by-two and led by a bagpiper. The next fight will be to secure their pensions.

Workers of a Continental tire factory in France continue to protest the planned closing of the plant. On Monday workers burned tires in front of the old Paris stock market in an attempt to bring attention to the plight of the 1,120 workers who will soon be out of a job. Union representatives of the workers will meet with managers of the German-based company today in an attempt to negotiate the planned 2010 closure.