Having just decided to close the Technics EMID, I heard on TV news this evening, that Matsushita have just announced that they are closing the Panasonic Television and set top box manufacturing facility in Wales, at the end of this year - 600 jobs at stake - what next??
Full Story here : http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/3423189.stm

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Willum

yep, see my post http://www.synthzone.com/ubbs/Forum25/HTML/002372.html
soon it feels as if everything will be made in China - until China becomes too expensive and people expect more than a bowl of rice a day

Only the main manufacturing is going. The high tech research and development is being kept in Wales. This has been the pattern of industrial development throughout the developed and developing world and with free(ish) trade is a healthy sign of the operation of the principle of comparative advantage. Leo (an economist in real life).

But surely Leo this is the biggest lump and Wales has had more than it's fair share of manufacturing upheaval in the last 50 years.
Think of all the people who were in crisis at the closing of the mines only to be met by other family destroying circumstances.
All they ask for is an opportunity to be able to work and earn a living so as to support their families.

You are absolutely right Johnnie. There was another massive job reduction at Panasonic a couple of years ago. It was about 1000 that time.
As for the remark that it is "a healthy sign of the operation of the principle of comparative advantage" I don't think it's a very 'healthy sign' for the unfortunate people who will lose their livelyhood. There will doubtless also be roll-on effects on external suppliers in this country, as there always is, when a closedown of this nature occurs.
Not all bad news - it will be good for the Czech Republic !!

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Willum

Willum
I am with you 100%.
There is a horrible disease that is poisoning the well being of one the worlds biggest assets, working people and that is greed.
Announced today :- A honorary Knighthood for Bill Gates (YAK) so in Great Britain he now has a title Sir William Gates and he is probably one of the top five of guilty culprits.

Hey, folks, don't run away with the idea that I like to hear about lost jobs and unemployment. But:
1. I know from listening to my local news avidly that job losses make national news while job creation - new firm start-ups and new business moving into the area as well as expansion of existing ones barely rates a mention on even the local news.
2. Unemployment has fallen dramatically over the last ten years.
3. There are large areas of skills shortages which is why we have to import certain types of skills.
4. The technological skills base created and demanded by companies such as Technics makes much unemployment very short-lived.
5. Consumers such as your good selves are interested in buying a high quality product at the lowest possible price. How many of you would make a major purchase of something like a Technics piano or keyboard at the manufacturer's list price when a quick search of the Internet shows two dealers in England who will supply at a 35% discount (at least) including delivery charge anywhere on the mainland? That hits the high street shops hard (even if they are chain stores) and consequently their staff. Or even something like published music and computer software (copying and sharing????) Am I guilty? Not of breach of copyright, no. But I told my local high street shop how much I could buy my Technics PR604 for through an Internet discounter and invited him to negotiate a deal with me on that basis. I ended up paying more than the discount price because it was worth it to have the local technical support and goodwill, but a substantial amount less than his original asking price. And would you really pay the list price for a car, white goods, Panasonic TV or digital camera?

My Fellow Forumers,

I have the greatest respect for all of you. I think you know that. If you don't, you know it now. Let me add some personal thoughts, sincerely offered, to what you have been saying.

I agree that employees are hit hardest when a firm closes its doors. No one can question that fact. But no man going into business does so to employ people. I owned a small business in Florida in the 1950's. I didn't enter into business to provide a source of income for a few local people. I went into business for the sole purpose of making money for me and my family. The fact that I had to hire employees to operate the business was simply a requirement to stay in business. I couldn't do it alone. When the business became unprofitable, I closed it. Simple as that. The employees lost their jobs. I couldn't continue to operate an unprofitable business just to guarantee my employees an income. Big business operates on the same principle. They are in business to make money, not to give jobs to people or contribute to a local economy. Please understand I am not defending big business. I am merely putting the facts of life in their true perspective

I had a military career. It came to an end after 26 years. I was out of a job. I had a family to support so I moved on. I found a job in private industry. That job ended after eight years and I was unemployed again. I moved on. I returned to college at the age of 60 to qualify myself for my new job. I retired five years later. I am just one of countless millions of people who find themselves out of work and who need to move on. A job is not for life! The people in Wales will move on. In this wonderful country where you have a welfare state providing an extensive financial safety net, some may elect to take advantage of that net, but most will move on like I did. Neither small nor big businesses owe their employees a job for life. Times and business conditions change and businesses had better be flexible enough to adapt to market conditions or no one will have a job.

As for the honors system, I find it to be rather ridiculous and Bill Gates being knighted is just one of many thousands of examples of how irrelevant the system is. My wife and I have been caring for our eldest son for nearly 50 years. He has a severe learning disability and is an insulin-dependent diabetic. Thus, we have had ample opportunity to be served by wonderful doctors, nurses, and carers wherever we have travelled. The carers, especially, never receive any recognition other than the pat on the back and other expressioons of appreciation we, the parents, give them. They are the people who should be awarded public recognition in the form of an honors system - not movie actors, rock band musicians, lawyers, athletes, businessmen, artists etc. For the government to give awards to movie actors et al makes a mockery of the honors system in my humble opinion. So I see it as an idea without merit unless such awards are given to people who deserve public recognition and reward for their contribution to humanity.

Thanks for listening.

Chuck

Hi All,

I agree that any person or group of people who start a business are there for themselves first.

In most cases employees are just a by product of the need to keep a business growing in order to keep sales moving.

But, I believe there is a major differece in the way people look at busiess and a living today.

In years gone by people were happy just to make a living. The shop owners of the corner stores did not ever expect to ever be Millionaires. They just wanted to provide a place in the world for their families to live.

Today eveyone wants to hit that lottery and they seem willing to do whatever they have need to do to find that pot of gold.

For example Disney asks its employees to take pay cuts and layoffs while they pay it's CEO an 11 million dollar bonus. Walt Disney would be ashamed of that. Yes he made money but he treated his employees like family.

The second problem I see it that we expect more and more people to be more and more technical. In the past there were always jobs available for the those people who just are not that technical. Assembly line jobs where a person could at least earn a living. Today we ship those jobs off shore and wonder why we have so many homeless people. We pay pennies a day for labor while we line our pockets with more money than we could ever use.

I don't have any answers because I to want that KN7000 for $400 or HD TV for less than $1000. And I too want that Lottery JackPot but that does not mean its good or right.

Happy Playing,
Heather

Hi Heather,

The compensation packages for CEO's are obscene in the extreme in many cases, and when it is at the expense of employees, it is immoral and indefensible as well. But the trend will continue simply because there isn't any way for the ordinary man to seek redress. Even shareholders are unable to deal with the problem because it is the board of directors who approve the compensation packages for CEO's. Sad, but true.

Chuck