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Harley Then and Now
Fact and figures about Harley-Davidson and a timeline of labor union woes for the Motor Company.
Wisconsin - Facts and figures:- About 9,000 people work for Harley-Davidson worldwide.
- Harley-Davidson's Springettsbury Township plant is its largest manufacturing facility with about 3,200 employees.
- There are more than 970 independent Harley-Davidson dealers in Asia and the Pacific area, Canada, Europe, Latin America, South America and the United States.
- Harley-Davidson has seven facilities that perform manufacturing operations. They are in East Troy, Wis.; Menomonee Falls, Wis.; Tomahawk, Wis.; Wauwatosa, Wis.; Kansas City, Mo.; Manaus, Brazil; and Springettsbury Township.
Timeline
Local unionized Harley workers also went on strike in 1969 and 1991. Here's a look at the company's history. Events concerning labor tensions are in bold:
- 1901: William S. Harley, 21, drafts a blueprint drawing of an engine designed to fit into a bicycle.
- 1903: Harley and Arthur Davidson, 20, make available to the public the first Harley-Davidson motorcycle, built in Milwaukee. Walter Davidson, Arthur Davidson's brother, joins the company.
- 1907: William A. Davidson, Arthur Davidson's brother, joins the company.
- 1910: The bar-and-shield logo is used for the first time. It's trademarked one year later.
- 1920: Harley-Davidson is the largest motorcycle manufacturer in the world.
- The association with a hog starts when the racing team's mascot, a pig, is carried on a victory lap after each race won by the Harley-Davidson team of racers. Sixty-three years later, Harley-Davidson begins HOG, Harley Owners Group.
- 1937: William Davidson dies at the age of 67.
- 1942: Walter Davidson dies at the age of 66.
- 1943: William Harley dies at the age of 63.
- 1950: Arthur Davidson dies at the age of 69.
- 1965: Harley-Davidson goes public for the first time, and the founders officially relinquish control.
- 1969: Workers at the Springettsbury Township plant walk out for a couple months.
- 1971: Jeffrey L. Bleustein, who would become part owner of Harley-Davidson, is an engineer with AMF, which owned Harley-Davidson at the time.
- 1974: Workers at the Milwaukee plant walk out.
- 1981: Bleustein and a group of 12 other senior executives at Harley-Davidson buy the company from AMF.
- 1983: Harley Owners Group, known as HOG, starts. Membership grows from more than 90,000 to more than 500,000 by 2000.
- 1991: Ninety-one percent of the unionized workers at the Springettsbury Township plant vote to strike. The strike lasts two weeks. Major issues were overtime notification and hours.
- 1993: Bleustein becomes president and chief operating officer of Harley-Davidson.
- 1997: Bleustein becomes president and chief executive officer of Harley-Davidson; a year later, chairman is added to his title.
- 2003: The company expands its Springettsbury Township plant by 350,000 square feet, improving upon technology, work environment and efficiency.
- 2006: Harley opens its first Chinese dealership.
- On August 16, President Bush visits the motorcycle maker's Softail plant in Springettsbury Township. It is the third visit to Harley by an incumbent president in 20 years.
- 2007: Ninety-eight percent of 2,722 unionized workers at the Springettsbury Township plant vote to strike after rejecting the company's proposed contract.
- Harley's stock closes Wednesday at $68.27, down 1.84 percent or $1.28 from the previous day's close on the New York Stock Exchange.
Source: York Daily Record/Sunday News archives
This article contributed by editor on Thursday, February 01, 2007 (16:16:45)
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