Saab Has Trouble Paying Employees
The day before Saab employers were to be paid, the company announced that it would be withholding all paychecks. With the exception of a few high ranking executives, all of Saab’s 3,700 employees will be forced to go without their pay for an unspecified amount of time. There have been many rumors surrounding Saab and and its financial stability. The company, which used to go by the name Spyker has been approached by several Russian and Chinese automakers offering to be bought out. Now more than ever, financial experts believe that Saab will file for bankruptcy. Because the company is unable to pay its workers, production will not begin again.
Saab has not manufactured a single vehicle since April 6th. Slow sales and a stagnant auto market has forced Saab to discontinue several lines of vehicles. Unions representing Saab workers in Sweden are only giving the company a few days in which to respond to its demand for payment. If all 3,700 workers walk away, Saab will need to file for bankruptcy protection.
Saab, which was recently by US auto manufacturing company GM to Spyker has been in free fall ever since. Saabs are notoriously expensive to produce, and export fees can be high. In a market where consumers are no longer purchasing luxury brands, Saabs have been a hard sale. It is not known if Saab will be able to sell the company before union leaders in Sweden file suit for unpaid wages as well as any other applicable fines.