Obama visiting the Chrysler plant

“Marchionne is doing a great job”

DETROIT– Sergio Marchionne “is doing a great job”. Barack Obama said this in front of some 1,500 workers at the Jefferson North Chrysler plant in Detroit. The head of the White House pointed out that a year ago two of the three ‘big’ American cars were “on the brink of liquidation” and reaffirmed the value of the agreement between Chrysler and Fiat. For his part, Sergio Marchionne, managing director of the two car manufacturers, praised the US president: “We are honored to have the president with us today. It was thanks to the courage of his decision that Chrysler was able to survive and grow just over a year after bankruptcy “. He added that he expects that between 2010 and 2011, Chrysler sales in Europe and South America will double to 200,000 units, leveraging Fiat’s international distribution network, especially in these markets. Precisely in conjunction with Obama’s visit, the US company announced that the Sterling Heights plant will not close in 2012, as planned so far, and that a second production line will be introduced with the creation of 900 jobs.

During the tour of the plants, Obama addressed himself

to employees: “It was nice to see the work you are doing and the machines you build, thinking that only a year ago here the future seemed dark”.
He then recalled, among the workers’ applause, that his “first new car was a Cherokee”. “Saving the American automotive industry was difficult. I didn’t want the government to enter the industry. Many people in Washington were skeptical about saving Chrysler and said it was stupid to help this company, but the government could not remain unmoved. we are here, that you are here is proof that those who criticized aid to GM and Chrysler were wrong “. In the positive budget drawn by Obama, some data stand out: the automotive industry is stronger, since mid-2009 55,000 jobs have been created in the sector and for the first time since 2004 the three sisters of Detroit have filed the first quarter with an operating profit. The road to the automotive industry is in any case “still long”, but the “difficult decisions made are paying”. “Thanks Sergio for what you did,” the head of the White House said at the end of his speech, referring once again to Marchionne.

Among the approximately 1,500 employees who welcomed the president, all members of the UAW (United Auto Worker) union are satisfied with the “rescue” operated by Fiat, many wore Obama’s celebrity shirts, other t-shirts dedicated to ‘World Class Manufacturing’ , the program introduced by Fiat against waste. Still others wore clothes with the words ‘From out of many 1’ and at the bottom the Noch symbol to signify dedication in any area, such as the family. In this case – the interested parties have explained – it means dedication to work.

(30 July 2010)