As a frontrunner among the Republican hopefuls to become the next president, Donald Trump has a lot of political sway at the moment. He's already using the national platform to threaten huge taxes against Ford for using factories in Mexico, and in a new interview with The Detroit News, Trump is expanding his thoughts to the whole auto industry. There's only one problem: Trump's suggested plan might not even be possible.
Trump believes that automakers shouldn't be opening factories in Mexico and then shipping the vehicles or components back to the US. In the interview, he offers a solution towards growing vehicle manufacturing – leave Michigan. "You can go to different parts of the United States and then ultimately you'd do full-circle – you'll come back to Michigan because those guys are going to want their jobs back even if it is less," the presidential hopeful said. "We can do the rotation in the United States – it doesn't have to be in Mexico." He further elaborated, suggesting that after Michigan "loses a couple of plants – all of sudden you'll make good deals in your own area."
Trump's strategy raises many challenges, though. One problem is that the current agreement between automakers and the United Auto Workers prevents the Big Three from paying workers in any state a lower amount, according to TheDetroitBureau.com. Even if that hurdle is somehow cleared, employees at non-unionized US plants – such as BMW, Mercedes-Benz, and Nissan – are still making a whole lot more than the $8 or $9 an hour of those at some factories in Mexico, and it seems highly unlikely that any American workers would be willing to work factory jobs for wages that low.
Beyond North American labor issues, Trump is now discussing problems with Japan, too. In the interview, he mentions the massive automotive trade deficit that sees over a million vehicles come here annually, while only thousands are exported there. "Until you open your markets, you're not selling any more cars over here," Trump threatens. "That's going to force people to build in the United States."
Trump believes that automakers shouldn't be opening factories in Mexico and then shipping the vehicles or components back to the US. In the interview, he offers a solution towards growing vehicle manufacturing – leave Michigan. "You can go to different parts of the United States and then ultimately you'd do full-circle – you'll come back to Michigan because those guys are going to want their jobs back even if it is less," the presidential hopeful said. "We can do the rotation in the United States – it doesn't have to be in Mexico." He further elaborated, suggesting that after Michigan "loses a couple of plants – all of sudden you'll make good deals in your own area."
Trump's strategy raises many challenges, though. One problem is that the current agreement between automakers and the United Auto Workers prevents the Big Three from paying workers in any state a lower amount, according to TheDetroitBureau.com. Even if that hurdle is somehow cleared, employees at non-unionized US plants – such as BMW, Mercedes-Benz, and Nissan – are still making a whole lot more than the $8 or $9 an hour of those at some factories in Mexico, and it seems highly unlikely that any American workers would be willing to work factory jobs for wages that low.
Beyond North American labor issues, Trump is now discussing problems with Japan, too. In the interview, he mentions the massive automotive trade deficit that sees over a million vehicles come here annually, while only thousands are exported there. "Until you open your markets, you're not selling any more cars over here," Trump threatens. "That's going to force people to build in the United States."
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