Where are these Tractors built?

Dahammer · Jul 23, 2003

Re: Where is these Tractors built?

 Whats the purpose of Unions anymore? If a person is good at what they do and are not lazy why would they want or need a union? Let me give you just one example. Say for instance you ask your boss for a two week unpaid leave of absence. He asks you what for, and you reply that it is for personal reasons. In other words, you rather not disclose why you need the time off, it is personal. Your boss probably has two choices at this point. He can approve your leave of absence or deny it. Lucky for you he approves it. He sends you on your way. In two weeks you return as scheduled. Your boss calls you in his office, explains that he heard through the grapevine your reasons for asking for the time off, he doesn't like the reason and he fires you. Now imagine you have a house, car payment and a young baby.

What do you do? You plead your case, explaining that he gave you the time off, you had his permission and returned when scheduled. How can this happen? It did. You are not a flunky, but an Aerospace Manufacturing Engineer working on Gas Turbine engines for things like the Abrams MIA Main battle tank. Lucky for you the Union is there. Your boss violated the contract by firing you for unjust cause. If the company needed you for those two weeks they should not have granted the leave of absence. If they wanted a specific reason for the unpaid leave they should have required it before they sent you on your way. But they didn't do any of this. After about seven months of union lawyers fighting for you (at no cost) just before you are to have your NLRB meeting, the company gives in and admits fault. You receive all you back pay with interest, your senority, and your job. Thanks to UAW , United Aerospace Workers Local 376 for going to bat.........

Lazy, useless workers can be fired in Union shops. I've seen it happen a dozen times. A verbal warning, and two written warning and you get five days off. Next time you are gone. All it requires is management to do some documention, if the manager is too lazy to document it then he has to live with what he has.

cowboydoc · Jul 23, 2003

Re: Where is these Tractors built?

If that person was truly a valued member of that company he wouldn't have been fired. If he made that company more than they paid him he also wouldn't have been fired. Lastly if I own a company why shouldn't I have the right to hire or fire whomever I want to? An employee sure has the right to quit anytime they want to but an employer doesn't have the same right?

If you're valuable you won't be fired. If you aren't people are going to look for ways to fire you.

Golfgar4 · Jul 23, 2003

Re: Where is these Tractors built?

( Your boss calls you in his office, explains that he heard through the grapevine your reasons for asking for the time off, he doesn't like the reason and he fires you. )

First off, I must admit I've never been a big union supporter. But there are a couple of questions that your story raises.

First, many employers have policies that state an employee cannot accept any other employment while they are off on a leave of absence from the normal work place. Is this possibly what happened?

Second, the boss is definitely wrong in basing his decision on the "grapevine". Did he give the employee an opportunity to explain? Your explanation implies that he did not. That would not be right.

If everything was on the up and up with the employee and his reason for wanting the leave of absence, then it was a good thing that the union was there.

However, even if the union had not been there, the employee would have other courses of action. In my state, an employee can go to the state employment relations board and file a complaint. They will investigate the complaint and ultimately have a hearing where an impartial adminsitrative law judge presides. And the employee doesn't have to pay any dues or any associated costs to do that!

My complaint with unions is that they've seemed to have reached a point where they feel they can tell the "company" how to run the business. They forget that their primary purpose is to help the employees earn a decent wage, have decent working conditions, and be treated fairly. Anymore, it seems like the unions believe they should be writing company policies.

If they stick with what they do best, I'd have a better outlook of them!

Woodbeef · Jul 23, 2003

Re: Where is these Tractors built?

Hey cowboydoc,

Go back and re-read your first post and my reply! Not saying that deere does not have suits from Corporate fly back and forth. But the day to day operation is handled by locals,just like the employes. Not sure where you got your 3rd world badge-engineered ideas from either. Deere is a global company whether you like it or not,and is ran as such. Each individual market dictates the products made in it. Other markets served from there are adapted from the basic design. As is witnessed by the 6020/15s made in Germany and sold in North America. Or the tractors built in Mexico,and India sold in North America.

BigDave · Jul 23, 2003

Re: Where is these Tractors built?

( In many cases, this just means that final assembly and testing were done in the USA )

Does anyone actually know this to be true for tractors? Seriously have some facts, not just what somebody else told you.

On my tractor, the only thing I've been able to find Made in Japan is the engine. The wheels, tires, hoses, MMM, & FEL all say Made in the USA. Most of the metal parts have Arabic numbers stamped on them, only the engine has Japanese symbols. I'm not going to think less of my tractor if these unnamed parts came from Mexico, Turkey or Japan. I do sincerely doubt that my Boomer is a rebadged Shibaura. To reinforce my beliefs, the rebadged Shibaura's sold by NH say Made in Japan and extremely similiar models are sold by Shibaura under their own label in other parts of the world. TC 24 & TC30 both have Shibaura twins. So far I haven't seen anything come out of Shibaura that even resembles a class I/II Boomer.

cowboydoc · Jul 23, 2003

Re: Where is these Tractors built?

"These tractors are adapted for sale in North America,not built that way to begin with."

This is not a true statement woodbeef. Deere does not go to Germany and say hey you have a Deutz here let's put our name on it and sell it as a 6415. That 6415 is designed and engineered in Moline. Prototypes are built and the tractor is further refined. Once they decide exactly what it is that they want they will see what is out there. They will take bids from whomever to build the product to their specific specs. Same with all of the parts. They give the specs to a certain company and say here make this part for us to our specs. Most of the tractors are then assembled from the parts that were machined in other countries here in the US.

Same with the 5x03 series in India. The plant there has John Deere right on it. This tractor was built according to Deere specs. They have a brand new state or the art mfg. facility there. If you would like to see the video go visit your local john deere dealer. I just saw it last week. Everything was built to what john deere wanted. The tractors were designed in Moline.

I have learned alot about John Deere mfg. the last few weeks. But I haven't learned it off of the internet. I have talked to the people that work at the plant and talked to the dealers. That's how I saw the facility in India. The dealer said you really want to see what happens and how these tractors are made and he showed me the dealer information tape on the 5x03's.

Wood_Butcher_Dav · Jul 23, 2003

Re: Where is these Tractors built?

I do know that Deere sends their engineers for overseas duty. The company that I work for is a supplier to Deere. One of the engineers that I use to work with is now in Germany for two years. A lot of the engineers in Moline are also farmers.
Just my two cents!

Dave

Wood_Butcher_Dav · Jul 23, 2003

Re: Where is these Tractors built?

( The tractors were designed in Moline)
I think most all of the tractor design work is done in Waterlo IA, Moline is where planters and harvesting is designed.

Dave

cowboydoc · Jul 23, 2003

Re: Where is these Tractors built?

Yes you may be right there Dave I'm not sure about that part.

Woodbeef · Jul 23, 2003

Re: Where is these Tractors built?

Now can you try and put this badge-engineering idea out of your mind? We are not talking about the Zetor built Deere 2000 series,or the Renault built 3000/3010 series. Nor will we discuss the Carraro built 5010 series for Europe.

Once again you have missed my point. There is a factory in Mannheim Germany,that at one time belonged to Lanz. It is now called John Deere Works Mannheim. This is where the all of the 6015/6020 series tractors are built in the world. The tractors built there that are shipped across the pond are changed from the normal run to meet the NA market. Mainly in safety equipment,trailer braking,hitch type,etc.....There are also less options available on the NA destin 6020s. The Indian project is a joint-venture with L&T,and is known as L&T/Deere.

One other point to this discussion. I'm not sure if the gentleman has retired yet or not,but: The President of World Wide Ag Equipment Divison at Deere is Ferdinand Korndorff,and he works out of Mannheim,not the US.