Nokia boycott urged by German unions
by Darren Murph 
posted Jan 17th 2008 at 1:30PM
So apparently, that whole "plan to shut down a Bochum Nokia plant" didn't exactly sail over everyone's heads, particularly not in Germany. Reports are now flowing out that unions in the nation are taking it upon themselves to urge consumers not to purchase wares from the firm, with Dietmar Muscheid, regional head of the Confederation of German Unions (DGB), being one of the most vocal. Muscheid went on to state that "whoever buys a cellphone today should think about the choice they are making and what catastrophic consequences the company's actions in Bochum will have for thousands of workers." 'Course, the EU has already proclaimed that Nokia won't be getting a dime in relocation (to Romania, supposedly) aid, but unspecified government officials are reportedly lined up to speak with suits from the handset maker later this week to "discuss the plant's future." Whether or not all this commotion will actually change any minds, however, remains to be seen.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Tamipa @ Jan 28th 2008 11:15AM
I am sorry for the workers but .
What about when Nokia relocates from Romania or Bulgaria to England? The German "muscle" starts once more to beat the brain. Furious and uncontrollable reactions govern the "developed" European countries. What the Unions (like it looks more a band of xenophobic hooligans) are demanding is not far away from Rene's Chauvin attitude. Hope the Union leaders read Bertold Brecht or if to illiterate perhaps they can watch the movie "The Point" based on his story about different cultures. German's should finally realize, they are growing fat on the other countries economies in EU. It's ridiculous but true that some of the technologies used today in Germany originates from Czech or Romanian inventors or companies and the way clever capitalists from Germany ruined naive enterprises in the East brought their reputation at an undesirable low level and fattened the bank accounts of economies that are now far away of being motivated to work but rather to try outsmart and cheat others. Who knows how hard the WWII hit the German pride and how they worked fueled by Ersatzkafee (the real one only on Sundays) and the desire to win can understand the union leaders chauvinism! Let us be realistic: if Nokia or Deutsche Bank or other enterprise finds good workers outside Germany that do the same job cheaper making EU products more competitive on the international market than please let the do so before the international dynamic replaces EU products with Korean, Chinese or Indian ones.