VW plant trains 'industrial athletes' Chattanooga workers prepared to 'perform at the highest level' Bill Poovey / Associated Press Chattanooga, Tenn. -- Volkswagen is requiring production workers hired for its new U.S. assembly plant to go through a fitness program on top of the usual job training, aiming to forge an "industrial athlete" who can lift, grip, bend and push without flagging.
VW formally opened its training academy at the $1 billion plant site Friday. But dozens of workers hired ahead of a projected production start early next year have already been building their bodies there before they start building cars. Jason Guess, the VW plant's manager of safety, health and wellness, said the fitness training is unique for VW plants globally. Volkswagen Chattanooga spokesman Scott Wilson said the workouts are aimed at better product quality when the German automaker starts building a mid-sized sedan at the plant, which is expected to create about 2,000 jobs. He said time in the classroom, hands-on training and fitness training are all "focused on getting each and every one of us, no matter what our job is at the plant, prepared to show up and perform at the highest level of professional excellence." Since April, fitness trainers have had new hires taking part in "on-the-clock" workouts that follow health testing and are individually tailored to their future production jobs that include the paint shop, body shop and assembly. In a region that is home of Little Debbie snack cakes, MoonPies and Krystal burgers, VW wellness-disability specialist Marsha Wood said the trainees are meeting the physical challenge in a community that generally has a "body mass index that is high." "We are improving it," Wood said, calling it training for an "industrial athlete." She said exercises in the two-hour daily workout sessions directed by Progressive Health Rehabilitation Services are linked to movements they will do every day and include stretching, cardiovascular strength, endurance, grip and how much employees can push and pull. She said the workers go through a three-week job orientation before starting the fitness regimen. Guess said there is no weight threshold to keep a job, but some workers have lost 30 pounds in three weeks of workouts. Guess said the plant will have an onsite fitness center that can also be used by workers' families. Anthony Staton, an assembly worker who finished the fitness program, said he didn't like it at first. "I felt like my hand was being forced a little bit," he said. Staton, 45, worked at a desk job at home for about four years and had a sedentary lifestyle before getting hired by VW. "That first week was really rough," said Staton, who's lost about 30 pounds. "After the first week I started noticing some changes in my body. I could do a flight of stairs a little more easily. I didn't get winded as easily." >From The Detroit News: http://www.detnews.com/article/20100605/AUTO01/6050312/1148/VW-plant-trains--industrial-athletes-#ixzz0qBz42Jz5 _______________________________________________ Marxism-Thaxis mailing list Marxism-Thaxis@lists.econ.utah.edu To change your options or unsubscribe go to: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/listinfo/marxism-thaxis
