Government must assume responsibility for the future of the vehicle-making industry

The Government must assume responsibility for the future of the vehicle-making industry in Sweden. We have skilled workers as well as advanced research and development in the field. All over the world the vehicle-making industry is facing structural problems and the Swedish vehicle industry needs to keep up with the competition in a better way, claims LO President Wanja Lundby-Wedin.
It is the Government’s responsibility to ensure that we maintain the existing industry complex in western Sweden that is based on workers’ skills, a close co-operation between industry and research, and the work performed by a large number of subcontractors. It does not need to mean Government ownership, but the Government must ensure that necessary prerequisites for continued production are created, maintains Wanja Lundby-Wedin.

The Government does not seem to take Saab into account any longer, while energetic efforts should be placed instead. Training efforts, employment measures as well as economic support will be needed, but no plans have been presented yet, says Wanja Lundby-Wedin.

LO has earlier suggested that the state should extend the number of companies that may be granted emergency loan from the Swedish Debt Office and that strong efforts should be made in order to protect employees within the industrial sector against being laid off. Instead they should be offered possibilities of training and skills development. LO would also like to have employment schemes enhanced by 50,000 during 2009 and efforts placed to create more training places in municipal adult education, at vocational colleges as well as colleges and universities, says Wanja Lundby-Wedin.