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Vote to unionize Toyota Canada plant faces delay

Volkswagen isn't the only automaker with high-profile unionization efforts afoot at one of its North American factories. Unifor, Canada's largest private-sector union, is attempting to organize Toyota's factories in Ontario, reports Reuters. A vote was originally set for next week, but Unifor has apparently found more workers eligible to vote, delaying the proceedings. It hasn't rescheduled the ballot yet, but claims there are 7,500 employees with the right to vote, with over 3,000 having already signed union cards.
Toyota is pushing against organizing, saying that workers already have a payment and benefits near the top of the industry, and noting that it has never laid off a permanent employee in Canada. Unifor has reportedly countered by saying that about a quarter of the workforce is operating under a temporary contract, which receives lower benefits.
The automaker has three factories in Ontario - two in Cambridge and one in Woodstock. To form a union, a majority of eligible employees must vote to join Unifor. If successful, they would be the first wholly owned Toyota plants in North America to be organized. Previous attempts to unionize the Japanese automaker's Canadian factories in 2001 and 2008 failed due to lack of support.

Mixed sales results, but automaker stocks rise on need for cars in Houston

DETROIT — The Big Three Detroit automakers on Friday reported better-than-expected August sales and issued optimistic outlooks for demand as residents of the Houston area replace flood-damaged cars and trucks after Hurricane Harvey, sending their stocks higher. General Motors, Ford and Fiat Chrysler posted mixed August U.S. sales, with GM up 7.5 percent and Ford and Fiat Chrysler down. Japanese automaker Toyota improved sales by nearly 7 percent, while Honda fell 2.4 percent. Still, analysts focused on the potential for Detroit automakers to cut inventories and stabilize used vehicle prices as residents of Houston, the fourth largest city in the United States, are forced to replace tens of thousands, perhaps hundreds of thousands, of vehicles after the devastation from Hurricane Harvey. Mark LaNeve, Ford's U.S. sales chief, told analysts on Friday that following Hurricane Katrina in 2005 "we saw a very dramatic snapback" in demand. That said, Ford sales fell 2.1 percent in August. It sold 209,897 vehicles in the United States, compared with 214,482 a year earlier. Sales were down 1.9 percent in the Ford division and off 5.8 percent at Lincoln. Demand was down for cars, crossovers and SUVs. It was not clear how many vehicles in the Houston area will be scrapped, LaNeve said, saying he had seen estimates ranging from 200,000 to 400,000 to 1 million. Ford's Houston dealers may have lost fewer than 5,000 vehicles in inventory, he said. Ford is the No. 1 automaker in the Houston market, with 18 percent share, according to IHS Markit. The company plans to ship used vehicles to Houston dealers and has "every indication we would have to add some production" of new vehicles to meet demand, LaNeve said. Investor concerns about inventories of unsold vehicles and falling used car prices have weighed on Detroit automakers' shares most of this year. Now, automakers can anticipate a jolt of demand from a big market that is a stronghold for Detroit brand trucks and SUVs. "It's got to be a positive for the industry," LaNeve said. Investors appeared to agree. GM shares rose as much as 3.3 percent to their highest since early March. Ford increased 2.8 percent at $11.34, and Fiat Chrysler's U.S.-traded shares were up 5.2 percent $15.91, hitting their highest in more than five years. GM reported a 7.5 percent increase in U.S. auto sales in August, helped by robust sales of crossovers across its four brands.

Andrew Gilleland is new VP of Scion, Murtha moves to Toyota

Scion is getting some fresh blood at the top as Andrew Gilleland (pictured above) becomes the new vice president to take over for Doug Murtha. Gilleland is no stranger to the division, and served as the national field operations manager early in the brand's launch. Murtha moves to take leadership of corporate strategy and planning for Toyota in North America. "Now it's Andrew's charge to spread the message of the style and value of the iM and iA, as well as a third new vehicle that will be added to the lineup," Toyota division group vice president Bill Fay said in the announcement. Gilleland moves up from being general manager of Toyota's central Atlantic regional office. He takes the reins at Scion at a potential turning point for the division. Sales volume for the year through August is down 22.1 percent to 32,691 vehicles, but some big changes are afoot. The long-lived xB is likely about to bow out, and the brand is launching two new products with the iM and iA. They're getting some celebrity advertising, too. Spy shots also suggest the FR-S might get a refresh soon. Plus, the third model Fay teases is expected to be a compact crossover, possibly with styling inspiration from the Toyota C-HR concept. Scion could get a big boost by having an entry in that booming segment. New Products, Previous Player - Scion Introduces New Vice President Andrew Gilleland Returns to Youth Brand September 24, 2015 TORRANCE, Calif. (Sept. 24, 2015) – In the early days of Scion, when xAs and xBs were flying out of dealers' showrooms, Andrew Gilleland was the National Field Operations Manager for the youth brand. He was responsible for working with dealers to ensure they embraced the new products and processes Scion offered. Now, Scion is entering its teen years, and Gilleland is back as Vice President of Scion, once again encouraging dealers to sell its new models and investigate new methods to attract young buyers. "Scion has sold nearly a million vehicles since I left in 2005 and I'm excited to be back leading this team," said Gilleland. "The iM 5-door hatchback and iA sports sedan arrived at dealerships earlier this month and the response has been great.