This fight is therefore critical for all autoworkers, both in the US and globally. For this reason the strike is of exceptional importance for the corporate and financial establishment in establishing the low-cost regime it hopes to enforce in EV production. The critical role played by Clarios in the production of batteries in the transition to electric vehicles cannot be overstated. In 2021, Clarios closed its last battery recycling plant in the US, located in South Carolina, following a series of fines by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for violations involving air pollution, hazardous wastes and improper transportation of lead batteries. Like the plant in Ohio, the plant was organized by the UAW, which did nothing to defend workers’ jobs. Earlier in the year the plant had been cited for exceeding allowed limits of hydrogen gas and sulfuric acid air. The state had forked over millions of dollars in subsidies when the facility expanded in 2011. The company said the move was aimed at “streamlining” its operations. It also has a research center in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.Ĭlarios North American facilities Ĭlarios closed a battery plant in Middletown, Delaware, in 2020, axing 230 jobs. Joseph, Missouri Red Oak, Iowa and Florence, South Carolina. Its 18 US facilities include a lithium ion battery plant in Holland, Michigan, and manufacturing operations in Kernerville, North Carolina San Antonio, Texas St. The company is reportedly joining with Natron Energy to manufacture what the partners said would be the world’s first mass-produced sodium ion batteries. It recently acquired Spanish battery recycler Metalúrgica de Medina. The battery maker employs 16,000 people at operations at 56 facilities around the world, including Mexico, China, Germany, South Korea, Brazil and the US. According to the firm’s website, the company produces “more than 150 million batteries-one-third of the industry’s output-every year.” It had a gross profit in 2022 of $1.6 billion. Milwaukee-based Clarios is the world’s largest manufacturer of automotive batteries. In addition, workers must get regularly tested for high levels of lead in their blood. Workers have lost $10 an hour or more due to repeated cuts in piece rates. They regularly work 19 days in a row and 12 hours a shift at straight time. The 525 workers have been on strike since May 8 after massively rejecting a sellout deal brought back by the UAW, containing totally inadequate pay raises and not addressing intolerable levels of overtime and unsafe conditions. Striking workers at the Clarios battery plant outside Toledo, Ohio, confront a multi-national corporation with a web of operations spanning the globe.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |