MENOMONEE FALLS, Wis — A lot of uncertainty for workers at the Harley Davidson plant in Menomonee Falls. The motorcycle maker announced it is moving some of its production to Thailand.
“How are people feeling in there?” asked reporter Rebecca Klopf.
“Pretty nervous,” said an unidentified worker.
Watch: Workers nervous after Harley-Davidson moves work from Wisconsin to Thailand
The workers she spoke to did not want to give their names or have their faces appear on camera due to worries both about their jobs and their future. Harley-Davidson says it moving more production of the Sport Series and Pan America bikes to Thailand. The workers say they believe their jobs will go too.
“We believe jobs are leaving but they don’t want to say how many,” said the worker.
Harley-Davidson refused an on-camera interview but says this is a “temporary transition” and “just for model year 25.” But one of the plant’s unions is angry. The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Union (IAM) says the company vowed never to build motorcycles overseas for the U.S. market. The IAM statement said, “Harley-Davidson has backtracked on that promise…”
Harley-Davidson disagrees, also saying “This does not have an impact on employment at U.S. facilities.” But workers are feeling different.
“What are they thinking inside the plant?” asked Klopf.
“It’s coming. We can see the writing on the wall,” said the worker.
There are around 600 workers inside the Menomonee Falls plant. Harley-Davidson recently ratified a new contract with them back in April.
Full Statement from IAM, International President, Brian Bryant:
“Harley-Davidson’s recent announcement to ship our work and jobs to Thailand is a kick in the teeth to American workers and a betrayal of the company’s legacy as an American icon. In 2019, nearly 600 IAM members at Harley-Davidson and Syncreon in Kansas City lost their jobs when the company shuttered its facility [goiam.org], claiming that its Thailand plant would only serve the Asian and European markets.
“Harley-Davidson has backtracked on that promise, planning to manufacture these bikes abroad and send them back to the U.S. for American consumers.
“When Americans think of motorcycles, they think of Harley-Davidson—a brand that has long symbolized the spirit and strength of our country. To now see this self-proclaimed American icon ship our jobs to Asia is a disgrace. This decision undermines the hard work and dedication of IAM members in York, Pa., and Menomonee Falls, Wis., who have been the backbone of Harley-Davidson’s success.
“The IAM will employ every resource at our disposal to fight this outrageous move. Harley-Davidson needs to return to the drawing board and develop a solution that keeps the production of the Sport Series and Pan America bikes where they belong—in the United States.”
Response from a Harley-Davidson spokesperson:
“Harley-Davidson is proud to design and develop all its iconic motorcycles in the USA. As a global company, Harley-Davidson also maintains an international manufacturing footprint, like many of its peers. As part of our overall manufacturing optimization strategy, Harley-Davidson is to temporarily transition the production of its non-core Revolution Max powertrain equipped models (Pan America, Sportster S, Nightster), to its existing manufacturing facility in Thailand, for model year 25. This move optimizes production capacity for Grand American Touring and other core product segments such as Softail and Trike motorcycles at its York, PA facility. Additionally, building on the DOE Grant, as part of this move, we are investing an additional $9m into our US manufacturing facilities to focus and strengthen our US manufacturing capabilities and capacity for our core products.”
“This does not have an impact on employment at U.S. facilities.”
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