Foxconn's $10 billion facility in Wisconsin for 'knowledge' and not large-scale manufactur...

Posted:
in iPhone edited January 2019
Apple manufacturing partner Foxconn is re-evaluating what it wants to do with its location in Wisconsin and is saying that the site will be more research-oriented than a manufacturing boom for the region.

President Donald Trump, previous House Speaker Paul Ryan, and Foxconn chairman Terry Gou breaking ground in Wisconsin
President Donald Trump, previous House Speaker Paul Ryan, and Foxconn chairman Terry Gou breaking ground in Wisconsin


After over a year of promises to restore manufacturing to Wisconsin, Foxconn appears to be having second thoughts on who precisely would be employed at the facility. Louis Woo, a special assistant to Foxconn chief Terry Gou told Reuters that the company was still considering what to do in Wisconsin -- but that it would no longer be a venue for assembling LCD panels for television, and likely not a giant manufacturing hub at all.

"In terms of TV, we have no place in the U.S. We can't compete." said Woo. "In Wisconsin we're not building a factory. You can't use a factory to view our Wisconsin investment."

The company still says that there will ultimately be 13,000 jobs created at the facility -- but also noted that hiring was slowed. The original pace was to hit 5200 employees by the end of 2020, but the company is currently on pace to have only 1000 by then.

Foxconn has already missed the first wicket for a tax credit. To get the first credit of $9.5 million, the company was supposed to hire 260 people in 2018. Instead, it hired only 178.

Woo went on to say that about 75 percent of the jobs generated in Wisconsin are "knowledge" positions, and not the massive factory for blue collar workers that was originally envisioned.

While Woo's remarks were on the record, Reuters cited sources familiar with the matter for two more pieces of information about the facility. First, Foxconn's CEO is said to be planning a meeting with Wisconsin's new governor to discuss "modifications of the agreement" -- but what that entails isn't clear.

Additionally, sources claim that Foxconn may walk away from future incentives that the Wisconsin government is currently on the hook for, should it feel that it is unable to meet the job generation and capital investment mandates in the deal.

As part of the deal to open the 20 million-square-foot facility in Wisconsin, a package of $764 million in incentives has been provided by Mount Pleasant and Racine County, the town and county where it will be built. On top of this, the state of Wisconsin pledged another $134 million for the improvement of state highways and local roads near the site.

The benefits are in addition to existing financial incentives, which primarily consists of $2.85 billion in income tax credits for job creation and capital expenditures. There is also a sales tax exemption worth $150 million as part of the $3 billion bundle.

The state will be responsible for covering 40 percent of the public bonds used to finance all of the local expenses, in the event the project fails completely.

In return for the incentives, Wisconsin was sold on the deal that was originally going to build LCD panels for televisions. The cited 13,000 jobs was also pitched as beneficial for areas near the facility, including local businesses seeing increased trade and changes in house prices. Foxconn's original pitch for the job creation called it mostly factory workers, accompanied by a much smaller amount of engineers and business support staff.

While originally believed to produce large display panels, another possibility raised by Foxconn was construction of small and medium-sized panels due to the transportation risks associated with bigger screens. Considering Foxconn is a production partner for Apple products, and is the owner of iPhone and iPad display producer Sharp, it is plausible that some future iPhone screens could be produced from the Wisconsin facility in the future.

In November 2018, Foxconn denied reports that it was shuffling Chinese engineers to the Wisconsin facility, instead of hiring locally.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 22
    genovellegenovelle Posts: 1,480member
    Apple manufacturing partner Foxconn is re-evaluating what it wants to do with its location in Wisconsin and is saying that the site will be more research-oriented than a manufacturing boom for the region.

    President Donald Trump, previous House Speaker Paul Ryan, and Foxconn chairman Terry Gou breaking ground in Wisconsin
    President Donald Trump, previous House Speaker Paul Ryan, and Foxconn chairman Terry Gou breaking ground in Wisconsin


    After over a year of promises to restore manufacturing to Wisconsin, Foxconn appears to be having second thoughts on who precisely would be employed at the facility. Louis Woo, a special assistant to Foxconn chief Terry Gou told Reuters that the company was still considering what to do in Wisconsin -- but that it would no longer be a venue for assembling LCD panels for television, and likely not a giant manufacturing hub at all.

    "In terms of TV, we have no place in the U.S. We can't compete." said Woo. "In Wisconsin we're not building a factory. You can't use a factory to view our Wisconsin investment."

    The company still says that there will ultimately be 13,000 jobs created at the facility -- but also noted that hiring was slowed. The original pace was to hit 5200 employees by the end of 2020, but the company is currently on pace to have only 1000 by then.

    Foxconn has already missed the first wicket for a tax credit. To get the first credit of $9.5 million, the company was supposed to hire 260 people in 2018. Instead, it hired only 178.

    Woo went on to say that about 75 percent of the jobs generated in Wisconsin are "knowledge" positions, and not the massive factory for blue collar workers that was originally envisioned.

    While Woo's remarks were on the record, Reuters cited sources familiar with the matter for two more pieces of information about the facility. First, Foxconn's CEO is said to be planning a meeting with Wisconsin's new governor to discuss "modifications of the agreement" -- but what that entails isn't clear.

    Additionally, sources claim that Foxconn may walk away from future incentives that the Wisconsin government is currently on the hook for, should it feel that it is unable to meet the job generation and capital investment mandates in the deal.

    As part of the deal to open the 20 million-square-foot facility in Wisconsin, a package of $764 million in incentives has been provided by Mount Pleasant and Racine County, the town and county where it will be built. On top of this, the state of Wisconsin pledged another $134 million for the improvement of state highways and local roads near the site.

    The benefits are in addition to existing financial incentives, which primarily consists of $2.85 billion in income tax credits for job creation and capital expenditures. There is also a sales tax exemption worth $150 million as part of the $3 billion bundle.

    The state will be responsible for covering 40 percent of the public bonds used to finance all of the local expenses, in the event the project fails completely.

    In return for the incentives, Wisconsin was sold on the deal that was originally going to build LCD panels for televisions. The cited 13,000 jobs was also pitched as beneficial for areas near the facility, including local businesses seeing increased trade and changes in house prices. Foxconn's original pitch for the job creation called it mostly factory workers, accompanied by a much smaller amount of engineers and business support staff.

    While originally believed to produce large display panels, another possibility raised by Foxconn was construction of small and medium-sized panels due to the transportation risks associated with bigger screens. Considering Foxconn is a production partner for Apple products, and is the owner of iPhone and iPad display producer Sharp, it is plausible that some future iPhone screens could be produced from the Wisconsin facility in the future.

    In November 2018, Foxconn denied reports that it was shuffling Chinese engineers to the Wisconsin facility, instead of hiring locally.
    I wonder why a Chinese company would be having second thoughts on investments in the US?
    bshank
  • Reply 2 of 22
    dewmedewme Posts: 5,328member
    genovelle said:
    Apple manufacturing partner Foxconn is re-evaluating what it wants to do with its location in Wisconsin and is saying that the site will be more research-oriented than a manufacturing boom for the region.

    President Donald Trump, previous House Speaker Paul Ryan, and Foxconn chairman Terry Gou breaking ground in Wisconsin
    President Donald Trump, previous House Speaker Paul Ryan, and Foxconn chairman Terry Gou breaking ground in Wisconsin


    After over a year of promises to restore manufacturing to Wisconsin, Foxconn appears to be having second thoughts on who precisely would be employed at the facility. Louis Woo, a special assistant to Foxconn chief Terry Gou told Reuters that the company was still considering what to do in Wisconsin -- but that it would no longer be a venue for assembling LCD panels for television, and likely not a giant manufacturing hub at all.

    "In terms of TV, we have no place in the U.S. We can't compete." said Woo. "In Wisconsin we're not building a factory. You can't use a factory to view our Wisconsin investment."

    The company still says that there will ultimately be 13,000 jobs created at the facility -- but also noted that hiring was slowed. The original pace was to hit 5200 employees by the end of 2020, but the company is currently on pace to have only 1000 by then.

    Foxconn has already missed the first wicket for a tax credit. To get the first credit of $9.5 million, the company was supposed to hire 260 people in 2018. Instead, it hired only 178.

    Woo went on to say that about 75 percent of the jobs generated in Wisconsin are "knowledge" positions, and not the massive factory for blue collar workers that was originally envisioned.

    While Woo's remarks were on the record, Reuters cited sources familiar with the matter for two more pieces of information about the facility. First, Foxconn's CEO is said to be planning a meeting with Wisconsin's new governor to discuss "modifications of the agreement" -- but what that entails isn't clear.

    Additionally, sources claim that Foxconn may walk away from future incentives that the Wisconsin government is currently on the hook for, should it feel that it is unable to meet the job generation and capital investment mandates in the deal.

    As part of the deal to open the 20 million-square-foot facility in Wisconsin, a package of $764 million in incentives has been provided by Mount Pleasant and Racine County, the town and county where it will be built. On top of this, the state of Wisconsin pledged another $134 million for the improvement of state highways and local roads near the site.

    The benefits are in addition to existing financial incentives, which primarily consists of $2.85 billion in income tax credits for job creation and capital expenditures. There is also a sales tax exemption worth $150 million as part of the $3 billion bundle.

    The state will be responsible for covering 40 percent of the public bonds used to finance all of the local expenses, in the event the project fails completely.

    In return for the incentives, Wisconsin was sold on the deal that was originally going to build LCD panels for televisions. The cited 13,000 jobs was also pitched as beneficial for areas near the facility, including local businesses seeing increased trade and changes in house prices. Foxconn's original pitch for the job creation called it mostly factory workers, accompanied by a much smaller amount of engineers and business support staff.

    While originally believed to produce large display panels, another possibility raised by Foxconn was construction of small and medium-sized panels due to the transportation risks associated with bigger screens. Considering Foxconn is a production partner for Apple products, and is the owner of iPhone and iPad display producer Sharp, it is plausible that some future iPhone screens could be produced from the Wisconsin facility in the future.

    In November 2018, Foxconn denied reports that it was shuffling Chinese engineers to the Wisconsin facility, instead of hiring locally.
    I wonder why a Chinese company would be having second thoughts on investments in the US?
    Perhaps because they have finally come to the same conclusion that Steve Jobs did when he told the former president "Those jobs aren't coming back." When you really think about it, Steve was a pretty smart guy. Who da thunk?
    designraaronkalbwatto_cobra
  • Reply 3 of 22
    DAalsethDAalseth Posts: 2,783member
    I've seen this over and over. A government, local, city, state, province, national, offers a bunch of incentives, e.g. taxpayer money, to a company for doing something. The company takes the money, and then "the business environment changes" or some such other weasel words and the company doesn't do what they said they would. At least Wisconsin was smart enough to have benchmarks so Foxconn won't walk away with all of it. Still it's the same pattern. Texas and Austin offered benefits to Apple for opening a manufacturing facility in Texas, that has never really taken off. Minnesota offered huge incentives to Northwest Airlines for a big repair facility on the Range, that never seemed to go anywhere.

    If an investment does not work without the government incentives, then it's a bad idea with them.
    edited January 2019 designrsandorSpamSandwichaaronkalbwelshdog
  • Reply 4 of 22
    Kind of seems like the "big" deal and announcement of tens of thousands of well paying jobs in Wisconsin might have been nothing more than an attempt to provide both Trump and Walker some positive media buzz.  That may seem cynical to say, but there were a lot of people who questioned how a giant tv screen plant would ever make sense in Wisconsin and I guess we now have that answer - it doesn't make sense.
    muthuk_vanalingamaaronkalbwelshdogn2itivguywatto_cobra
  • Reply 5 of 22
    Attracting knowledge workers may not be such a bad thing. And maybe training could be offered for those that need it. 
    dewmewatto_cobra
  • Reply 6 of 22
    sandorsandor Posts: 655member

    But when Apple began making the $3,000 computer in Austin, Tex., it struggled to find enough screws, according to three people who worked on the project and spoke on the condition of anonymity because of confidentiality agreements.

    In China, Apple relied on factories that can produce vast quantities of custom screws on short notice. In Texas, where they say everything is bigger, it turned out the screw suppliers were not.

    Tests of new versions of the computer were hamstrung because a 20-employee machine shop that Apple’s manufacturing contractor was relying on could produce at most 1,000 screws a day.


    The problem is that our manufacturing in the US is, in many respects, 20+ years behind.
    The 7 day a week, 3-shift factories closed decades ago, the level of ability needed in a factory worker today has moved beyond the capabilities of those once employed in factories lost to NAFTA & there is no incentive to train, no government push for better education.

    Just like in the past, we are in a day that CEOs take extra millions, leaving America's workers stagnated, stranded & on the cusp of financial insecurity (40% of Americans cannot cover a $400 emergency)

    ...meanwhile the chumps at Davos don't understand why they should be "penalized" for making over $10,000,000 a year... 







  • Reply 7 of 22
    genovelle said:
    Apple manufacturing partner Foxconn is re-evaluating what it wants to do with its location in Wisconsin and is saying that the site will be more research-oriented than a manufacturing boom for the region.

    President Donald Trump, previous House Speaker Paul Ryan, and Foxconn chairman Terry Gou breaking ground in Wisconsin
    President Donald Trump, previous House Speaker Paul Ryan, and Foxconn chairman Terry Gou breaking ground in Wisconsin


    After over a year of promises to restore manufacturing to Wisconsin, Foxconn appears to be having second thoughts on who precisely would be employed at the facility. Louis Woo, a special assistant to Foxconn chief Terry Gou told Reuters that the company was still considering what to do in Wisconsin -- but that it would no longer be a venue for assembling LCD panels for television, and likely not a giant manufacturing hub at all.

    "In terms of TV, we have no place in the U.S. We can't compete." said Woo. "In Wisconsin we're not building a factory. You can't use a factory to view our Wisconsin investment."

    The company still says that there will ultimately be 13,000 jobs created at the facility -- but also noted that hiring was slowed. The original pace was to hit 5200 employees by the end of 2020, but the company is currently on pace to have only 1000 by then.

    Foxconn has already missed the first wicket for a tax credit. To get the first credit of $9.5 million, the company was supposed to hire 260 people in 2018. Instead, it hired only 178.

    Woo went on to say that about 75 percent of the jobs generated in Wisconsin are "knowledge" positions, and not the massive factory for blue collar workers that was originally envisioned.

    While Woo's remarks were on the record, Reuters cited sources familiar with the matter for two more pieces of information about the facility. First, Foxconn's CEO is said to be planning a meeting with Wisconsin's new governor to discuss "modifications of the agreement" -- but what that entails isn't clear.

    Additionally, sources claim that Foxconn may walk away from future incentives that the Wisconsin government is currently on the hook for, should it feel that it is unable to meet the job generation and capital investment mandates in the deal.

    As part of the deal to open the 20 million-square-foot facility in Wisconsin, a package of $764 million in incentives has been provided by Mount Pleasant and Racine County, the town and county where it will be built. On top of this, the state of Wisconsin pledged another $134 million for the improvement of state highways and local roads near the site.

    The benefits are in addition to existing financial incentives, which primarily consists of $2.85 billion in income tax credits for job creation and capital expenditures. There is also a sales tax exemption worth $150 million as part of the $3 billion bundle.

    The state will be responsible for covering 40 percent of the public bonds used to finance all of the local expenses, in the event the project fails completely.

    In return for the incentives, Wisconsin was sold on the deal that was originally going to build LCD panels for televisions. The cited 13,000 jobs was also pitched as beneficial for areas near the facility, including local businesses seeing increased trade and changes in house prices. Foxconn's original pitch for the job creation called it mostly factory workers, accompanied by a much smaller amount of engineers and business support staff.

    While originally believed to produce large display panels, another possibility raised by Foxconn was construction of small and medium-sized panels due to the transportation risks associated with bigger screens. Considering Foxconn is a production partner for Apple products, and is the owner of iPhone and iPad display producer Sharp, it is plausible that some future iPhone screens could be produced from the Wisconsin facility in the future.

    In November 2018, Foxconn denied reports that it was shuffling Chinese engineers to the Wisconsin facility, instead of hiring locally.
    I wonder why a Chinese company would be having second thoughts on investments in the US?
    Results of the midterms. After Democrats gained control of Congress economic activity, especially in the stock market, has slowed dramatically.
  • Reply 8 of 22
    sandor said:

    But when Apple began making the $3,000 computer in Austin, Tex., it struggled to find enough screws, according to three people who worked on the project and spoke on the condition of anonymity because of confidentiality agreements.

    In China, Apple relied on factories that can produce vast quantities of custom screws on short notice. In Texas, where they say everything is bigger, it turned out the screw suppliers were not.

    Tests of new versions of the computer were hamstrung because a 20-employee machine shop that Apple’s manufacturing contractor was relying on could produce at most 1,000 screws a day.


    The problem is that our manufacturing in the US is, in many respects, 20+ years behind.
    The 7 day a week, 3-shift factories closed decades ago, the level of ability needed in a factory worker today has moved beyond the capabilities of those once employed in factories lost to NAFTA & there is no incentive to train, no government push for better education.

    Just like in the past, we are in a day that CEOs take extra millions, leaving America's workers stagnated, stranded & on the cusp of financial insecurity (40% of Americans cannot cover a $400 emergency)

    ...meanwhile the chumps at Davos don't understand why they should be "penalized" for making over $10,000,000 a year... 







    That’s a bunch of socialist propaganda. The better alternative is to have all business and hiring decisions handled by a powerful central government, right? LOL. No.
  • Reply 9 of 22
    I wonder why a Chinese company would be having second thoughts on investments in the US?
    Results of the midterms. After Democrats gained control of Congress economic activity, especially in the stock market, has slowed dramatically.
    You're joking, right? It's like the big tax cut in 2017 that every CEO has come out and said it had ZERO impact on their US investment plans.
    sandorStrangeDayscolinngdsd
  • Reply 10 of 22
    sandorsandor Posts: 655member
    sandor said:

    But when Apple began making the $3,000 computer in Austin, Tex., it struggled to find enough screws, according to three people who worked on the project and spoke on the condition of anonymity because of confidentiality agreements.

    In China, Apple relied on factories that can produce vast quantities of custom screws on short notice. In Texas, where they say everything is bigger, it turned out the screw suppliers were not.

    Tests of new versions of the computer were hamstrung because a 20-employee machine shop that Apple’s manufacturing contractor was relying on could produce at most 1,000 screws a day.


    The problem is that our manufacturing in the US is, in many respects, 20+ years behind.
    The 7 day a week, 3-shift factories closed decades ago, the level of ability needed in a factory worker today has moved beyond the capabilities of those once employed in factories lost to NAFTA & there is no incentive to train, no government push for better education.

    Just like in the past, we are in a day that CEOs take extra millions, leaving America's workers stagnated, stranded & on the cusp of financial insecurity (40% of Americans cannot cover a $400 emergency)

    ...meanwhile the chumps at Davos don't understand why they should be "penalized" for making over $10,000,000 a year... 







    That’s a bunch of socialist propaganda. The better alternative is to have all business and hiring decisions handled by a powerful central government, right? LOL. No.
    You are missing the *entire middle ground* if you go from completely free market to complete control by a central government.

    If protecting workers is socialism, i am all for it. 

    We have a very strong history in the US of unrestrained free markets resulting in massive worker exploitation.
    The Chicago meat packing plants.
    Millionaires like Carnegie sending rifle-armed private militias in to break strikes.

    The 30+ point decrease in the marginal tax rate since 1970 is part of what brings us the enormous income gap we currently have.
    The top 1% of wage earners (over $400,000 per year puts you there) are so out of touch with the other 99% of the population that they cannot even fathom not being able to cover a $400 surprise bill.

    Stocks doing well, which means the rich getting richer, unemployment at incredibly low levels but the average American family in the bottom 99% is still existing on $50,000 a year, cannot save for surprise bills let alone the future or retirement & wages are stagnant.


    edited January 2019 StrangeDayscolinngdsd
  • Reply 11 of 22
    fastasleepfastasleep Posts: 6,408member
    genovelle said:
    Apple manufacturing partner Foxconn is re-evaluating what it wants to do with its location in Wisconsin and is saying that the site will be more research-oriented than a manufacturing boom for the region.

    President Donald Trump, previous House Speaker Paul Ryan, and Foxconn chairman Terry Gou breaking ground in Wisconsin
    President Donald Trump, previous House Speaker Paul Ryan, and Foxconn chairman Terry Gou breaking ground in Wisconsin


    After over a year of promises to restore manufacturing to Wisconsin, Foxconn appears to be having second thoughts on who precisely would be employed at the facility. Louis Woo, a special assistant to Foxconn chief Terry Gou told Reuters that the company was still considering what to do in Wisconsin -- but that it would no longer be a venue for assembling LCD panels for television, and likely not a giant manufacturing hub at all.

    "In terms of TV, we have no place in the U.S. We can't compete." said Woo. "In Wisconsin we're not building a factory. You can't use a factory to view our Wisconsin investment."

    The company still says that there will ultimately be 13,000 jobs created at the facility -- but also noted that hiring was slowed. The original pace was to hit 5200 employees by the end of 2020, but the company is currently on pace to have only 1000 by then.

    Foxconn has already missed the first wicket for a tax credit. To get the first credit of $9.5 million, the company was supposed to hire 260 people in 2018. Instead, it hired only 178.

    Woo went on to say that about 75 percent of the jobs generated in Wisconsin are "knowledge" positions, and not the massive factory for blue collar workers that was originally envisioned.

    While Woo's remarks were on the record, Reuters cited sources familiar with the matter for two more pieces of information about the facility. First, Foxconn's CEO is said to be planning a meeting with Wisconsin's new governor to discuss "modifications of the agreement" -- but what that entails isn't clear.

    Additionally, sources claim that Foxconn may walk away from future incentives that the Wisconsin government is currently on the hook for, should it feel that it is unable to meet the job generation and capital investment mandates in the deal.

    As part of the deal to open the 20 million-square-foot facility in Wisconsin, a package of $764 million in incentives has been provided by Mount Pleasant and Racine County, the town and county where it will be built. On top of this, the state of Wisconsin pledged another $134 million for the improvement of state highways and local roads near the site.

    The benefits are in addition to existing financial incentives, which primarily consists of $2.85 billion in income tax credits for job creation and capital expenditures. There is also a sales tax exemption worth $150 million as part of the $3 billion bundle.

    The state will be responsible for covering 40 percent of the public bonds used to finance all of the local expenses, in the event the project fails completely.

    In return for the incentives, Wisconsin was sold on the deal that was originally going to build LCD panels for televisions. The cited 13,000 jobs was also pitched as beneficial for areas near the facility, including local businesses seeing increased trade and changes in house prices. Foxconn's original pitch for the job creation called it mostly factory workers, accompanied by a much smaller amount of engineers and business support staff.

    While originally believed to produce large display panels, another possibility raised by Foxconn was construction of small and medium-sized panels due to the transportation risks associated with bigger screens. Considering Foxconn is a production partner for Apple products, and is the owner of iPhone and iPad display producer Sharp, it is plausible that some future iPhone screens could be produced from the Wisconsin facility in the future.

    In November 2018, Foxconn denied reports that it was shuffling Chinese engineers to the Wisconsin facility, instead of hiring locally.
    I wonder why a Chinese company would be having second thoughts on investments in the US?
    They’re Taiwanese. 
    colinng
  • Reply 12 of 22
    sandor said:
    sandor said:

    But when Apple began making the $3,000 computer in Austin, Tex., it struggled to find enough screws, according to three people who worked on the project and spoke on the condition of anonymity because of confidentiality agreements.

    In China, Apple relied on factories that can produce vast quantities of custom screws on short notice. In Texas, where they say everything is bigger, it turned out the screw suppliers were not.

    Tests of new versions of the computer were hamstrung because a 20-employee machine shop that Apple’s manufacturing contractor was relying on could produce at most 1,000 screws a day.


    The problem is that our manufacturing in the US is, in many respects, 20+ years behind.
    The 7 day a week, 3-shift factories closed decades ago, the level of ability needed in a factory worker today has moved beyond the capabilities of those once employed in factories lost to NAFTA & there is no incentive to train, no government push for better education.

    Just like in the past, we are in a day that CEOs take extra millions, leaving America's workers stagnated, stranded & on the cusp of financial insecurity (40% of Americans cannot cover a $400 emergency)

    ...meanwhile the chumps at Davos don't understand why they should be "penalized" for making over $10,000,000 a year... 







    That’s a bunch of socialist propaganda. The better alternative is to have all business and hiring decisions handled by a powerful central government, right? LOL. No.
    You are missing the *entire middle ground* if you go from completely free market to complete control by a central government.

    If protecting workers is socialism, i am all for it. 

    We have a very strong history in the US of unrestrained free markets resulting in massive worker exploitation.
    The Chicago meat packing plants.
    Millionaires like Carnegie sending rifle-armed private militias in to break strikes.

    The 30+ point decrease in the marginal tax rate since 1970 is part of what brings us the enormous income gap we currently have.
    The top 1% of wage earners (over $400,000 per year puts you there) are so out of touch with the other 99% of the population that they cannot even fathom not being able to cover a $400 surprise bill.

    Stocks doing well, which means the rich getting richer, unemployment at incredibly low levels but the average American family in the bottom 99% is still existing on $50,000 a year, cannot save for surprise bills let alone the future or retirement & wages are stagnant.


    A strong business and job environment is the ultimate “protection” for workers because they have greater options to join companies which offer them more in exchange for their labor. Every so-called “advance” made by progressive unions was already being addressed by private markets before the unions took credit for it. A thriving economy solves all issues.
  • Reply 13 of 22
    genovelle said:
    Apple manufacturing partner Foxconn is re-evaluating what it wants to do with its location in Wisconsin and is saying that the site will be more research-oriented than a manufacturing boom for the region.

    President Donald Trump, previous House Speaker Paul Ryan, and Foxconn chairman Terry Gou breaking ground in Wisconsin
    President Donald Trump, previous House Speaker Paul Ryan, and Foxconn chairman Terry Gou breaking ground in Wisconsin


    After over a year of promises to restore manufacturing to Wisconsin, Foxconn appears to be having second thoughts on who precisely would be employed at the facility. Louis Woo, a special assistant to Foxconn chief Terry Gou told Reuters that the company was still considering what to do in Wisconsin -- but that it would no longer be a venue for assembling LCD panels for television, and likely not a giant manufacturing hub at all.

    "In terms of TV, we have no place in the U.S. We can't compete." said Woo. "In Wisconsin we're not building a factory. You can't use a factory to view our Wisconsin investment."

    The company still says that there will ultimately be 13,000 jobs created at the facility -- but also noted that hiring was slowed. The original pace was to hit 5200 employees by the end of 2020, but the company is currently on pace to have only 1000 by then.

    Foxconn has already missed the first wicket for a tax credit. To get the first credit of $9.5 million, the company was supposed to hire 260 people in 2018. Instead, it hired only 178.

    Woo went on to say that about 75 percent of the jobs generated in Wisconsin are "knowledge" positions, and not the massive factory for blue collar workers that was originally envisioned.

    While Woo's remarks were on the record, Reuters cited sources familiar with the matter for two more pieces of information about the facility. First, Foxconn's CEO is said to be planning a meeting with Wisconsin's new governor to discuss "modifications of the agreement" -- but what that entails isn't clear.

    Additionally, sources claim that Foxconn may walk away from future incentives that the Wisconsin government is currently on the hook for, should it feel that it is unable to meet the job generation and capital investment mandates in the deal.

    As part of the deal to open the 20 million-square-foot facility in Wisconsin, a package of $764 million in incentives has been provided by Mount Pleasant and Racine County, the town and county where it will be built. On top of this, the state of Wisconsin pledged another $134 million for the improvement of state highways and local roads near the site.

    The benefits are in addition to existing financial incentives, which primarily consists of $2.85 billion in income tax credits for job creation and capital expenditures. There is also a sales tax exemption worth $150 million as part of the $3 billion bundle.

    The state will be responsible for covering 40 percent of the public bonds used to finance all of the local expenses, in the event the project fails completely.

    In return for the incentives, Wisconsin was sold on the deal that was originally going to build LCD panels for televisions. The cited 13,000 jobs was also pitched as beneficial for areas near the facility, including local businesses seeing increased trade and changes in house prices. Foxconn's original pitch for the job creation called it mostly factory workers, accompanied by a much smaller amount of engineers and business support staff.

    While originally believed to produce large display panels, another possibility raised by Foxconn was construction of small and medium-sized panels due to the transportation risks associated with bigger screens. Considering Foxconn is a production partner for Apple products, and is the owner of iPhone and iPad display producer Sharp, it is plausible that some future iPhone screens could be produced from the Wisconsin facility in the future.

    In November 2018, Foxconn denied reports that it was shuffling Chinese engineers to the Wisconsin facility, instead of hiring locally.
    I wonder why a Chinese company would be having second thoughts on investments in the US?
    Results of the midterms. After Democrats gained control of Congress economic activity, especially in the stock market, has slowed dramatically.
    Lunancy, my guy, as you make the classic mistake of confusing correlation and causation. The economy was trending up during and after Obama, now its trending down. 
    fastasleepdsd
  • Reply 14 of 22
    sandor said:

    But when Apple began making the $3,000 computer in Austin, Tex., it struggled to find enough screws, according to three people who worked on the project and spoke on the condition of anonymity because of confidentiality agreements.

    In China, Apple relied on factories that can produce vast quantities of custom screws on short notice. In Texas, where they say everything is bigger, it turned out the screw suppliers were not.

    Tests of new versions of the computer were hamstrung because a 20-employee machine shop that Apple’s manufacturing contractor was relying on could produce at most 1,000 screws a day.


    The problem is that our manufacturing in the US is, in many respects, 20+ years behind.
    The 7 day a week, 3-shift factories closed decades ago, the level of ability needed in a factory worker today has moved beyond the capabilities of those once employed in factories lost to NAFTA & there is no incentive to train, no government push for better education.

    Just like in the past, we are in a day that CEOs take extra millions, leaving America's workers stagnated, stranded & on the cusp of financial insecurity (40% of Americans cannot cover a $400 emergency)

    ...meanwhile the chumps at Davos don't understand why they should be "penalized" for making over $10,000,000 a year... 







    That’s a bunch of socialist propaganda. The better alternative is to have all business and hiring decisions handled by a powerful central government, right? LOL. No.
    It isn’t at all. The executive class has sucked up a disproportionate share of income, now earning an average of 400:1 that of the average worker they manager. 

    Congrats on committing another logical fallacy — the straw man, as nobody suggested a global govt manage businesses. Put down the Alex Jones. 
    fastasleepdsdgatorguysandor
  • Reply 15 of 22

    sandor said:
    sandor said:

    But when Apple began making the $3,000 computer in Austin, Tex., it struggled to find enough screws, according to three people who worked on the project and spoke on the condition of anonymity because of confidentiality agreements.

    In China, Apple relied on factories that can produce vast quantities of custom screws on short notice. In Texas, where they say everything is bigger, it turned out the screw suppliers were not.

    Tests of new versions of the computer were hamstrung because a 20-employee machine shop that Apple’s manufacturing contractor was relying on could produce at most 1,000 screws a day.


    The problem is that our manufacturing in the US is, in many respects, 20+ years behind.
    The 7 day a week, 3-shift factories closed decades ago, the level of ability needed in a factory worker today has moved beyond the capabilities of those once employed in factories lost to NAFTA & there is no incentive to train, no government push for better education.

    Just like in the past, we are in a day that CEOs take extra millions, leaving America's workers stagnated, stranded & on the cusp of financial insecurity (40% of Americans cannot cover a $400 emergency)

    ...meanwhile the chumps at Davos don't understand why they should be "penalized" for making over $10,000,000 a year... 







    That’s a bunch of socialist propaganda. The better alternative is to have all business and hiring decisions handled by a powerful central government, right? LOL. No.
    You are missing the *entire middle ground* if you go from completely free market to complete control by a central government.

    If protecting workers is socialism, i am all for it. 

    We have a very strong history in the US of unrestrained free markets resulting in massive worker exploitation.
    The Chicago meat packing plants.
    Millionaires like Carnegie sending rifle-armed private militias in to break strikes.

    The 30+ point decrease in the marginal tax rate since 1970 is part of what brings us the enormous income gap we currently have.
    The top 1% of wage earners (over $400,000 per year puts you there) are so out of touch with the other 99% of the population that they cannot even fathom not being able to cover a $400 surprise bill.

    Stocks doing well, which means the rich getting richer, unemployment at incredibly low levels but the average American family in the bottom 99% is still existing on $50,000 a year, cannot save for surprise bills let alone the future or retirement & wages are stagnant.


    A strong business and job environment is the ultimate “protection” for workers because they have greater options to join companies which offer them more in exchange for their labor. Every so-called “advance” made by progressive unions was already being addressed by private markets before the unions took credit for it. A thriving economy solves all issues.
    Except when it doesn’t. We’d never have gotten to this level of awful wage disparity and the multiple problems it presents otherwise. 

    Nice Ayn Rand fantasy tho. Who died using social service, btw. Oops. 
    fastasleepcolinngdsdsandor
  • Reply 16 of 22
    Foxcon and Apple lied.  Wait for the tweet announcing massive new tariffs on Foxconn products.
  • Reply 17 of 22
    The FED finally admitted they screwed up, economy roaring again.  Huge new tarriffs on Apple products can be managed.
  • Reply 18 of 22
    Mike WuertheleMike Wuerthele Posts: 6,858administrator
    tbornot said:
    Foxcon and Apple lied.  Wait for the tweet announcing massive new tariffs on Foxconn products.
    Apple lied about what? This was never an Apple assembly plant, and only on the outside, was there a possibility of screens for an iPhone going to get made here.
    fastasleep
  • Reply 19 of 22
    colinngcolinng Posts: 116member
    LCD plant... but... OLED is the future! 
  • Reply 20 of 22
    fallenjtfallenjt Posts: 4,053member
    genovelle said:
    Apple manufacturing partner Foxconn is re-evaluating what it wants to do with its location in Wisconsin and is saying that the site will be more research-oriented than a manufacturing boom for the region.

    President Donald Trump, previous House Speaker Paul Ryan, and Foxconn chairman Terry Gou breaking ground in Wisconsin
    President Donald Trump, previous House Speaker Paul Ryan, and Foxconn chairman Terry Gou breaking ground in Wisconsin


    After over a year of promises to restore manufacturing to Wisconsin, Foxconn appears to be having second thoughts on who precisely would be employed at the facility. Louis Woo, a special assistant to Foxconn chief Terry Gou told Reuters that the company was still considering what to do in Wisconsin -- but that it would no longer be a venue for assembling LCD panels for television, and likely not a giant manufacturing hub at all.

    "In terms of TV, we have no place in the U.S. We can't compete." said Woo. "In Wisconsin we're not building a factory. You can't use a factory to view our Wisconsin investment."

    The company still says that there will ultimately be 13,000 jobs created at the facility -- but also noted that hiring was slowed. The original pace was to hit 5200 employees by the end of 2020, but the company is currently on pace to have only 1000 by then.

    Foxconn has already missed the first wicket for a tax credit. To get the first credit of $9.5 million, the company was supposed to hire 260 people in 2018. Instead, it hired only 178.

    Woo went on to say that about 75 percent of the jobs generated in Wisconsin are "knowledge" positions, and not the massive factory for blue collar workers that was originally envisioned.

    While Woo's remarks were on the record, Reuters cited sources familiar with the matter for two more pieces of information about the facility. First, Foxconn's CEO is said to be planning a meeting with Wisconsin's new governor to discuss "modifications of the agreement" -- but what that entails isn't clear.

    Additionally, sources claim that Foxconn may walk away from future incentives that the Wisconsin government is currently on the hook for, should it feel that it is unable to meet the job generation and capital investment mandates in the deal.

    As part of the deal to open the 20 million-square-foot facility in Wisconsin, a package of $764 million in incentives has been provided by Mount Pleasant and Racine County, the town and county where it will be built. On top of this, the state of Wisconsin pledged another $134 million for the improvement of state highways and local roads near the site.

    The benefits are in addition to existing financial incentives, which primarily consists of $2.85 billion in income tax credits for job creation and capital expenditures. There is also a sales tax exemption worth $150 million as part of the $3 billion bundle.

    The state will be responsible for covering 40 percent of the public bonds used to finance all of the local expenses, in the event the project fails completely.

    In return for the incentives, Wisconsin was sold on the deal that was originally going to build LCD panels for televisions. The cited 13,000 jobs was also pitched as beneficial for areas near the facility, including local businesses seeing increased trade and changes in house prices. Foxconn's original pitch for the job creation called it mostly factory workers, accompanied by a much smaller amount of engineers and business support staff.

    While originally believed to produce large display panels, another possibility raised by Foxconn was construction of small and medium-sized panels due to the transportation risks associated with bigger screens. Considering Foxconn is a production partner for Apple products, and is the owner of iPhone and iPad display producer Sharp, it is plausible that some future iPhone screens could be produced from the Wisconsin facility in the future.

    In November 2018, Foxconn denied reports that it was shuffling Chinese engineers to the Wisconsin facility, instead of hiring locally.
    I wonder why a Chinese company would be having second thoughts on investments in the US?
    They’re Taiwanese. 
    And they speak the Chinese language, Mandarin! Btw, China has never accepted Taiwan was an independent  country but a state of China.
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