Bright employment news is moving from hope to here for those who design and make vehicles.
A wire service report in the Detroit Free Press cites evidence of "a hiring spree as car makers and parts suppliers race to find engineers, technicians and factory workers to build the next generation of vehicles."
Assembly plants operate at near-full capacity now, with many on three shifts.
The Center for Automotive Research, a nonprofit team in Ann Arbor, expects the industry to add 35,000 jobs in 2013, .AP reporter Tom Kirsher writes.
The new employees will be part of a larger, busier workforce. From coast to coast, the industry is in top gear. Factories are operating at about 95% of capacity, and many are already running three shifts. As a result, some auto and parts companies are doing something they've been reluctant to consider since the recession: Adding floor space and spending millions of dollars on new equipment. . . .
Large parts companies such as Lear, BorgWarner Inc. and TRW Automotive Holdings Corp. are hiring at factories and research centers. Smaller suppliers are adding jobs as well. . . .
"As volume goes up, we will really need to add heads," says Mel Stephens, a spokesman for Lear Corp., which makes automotive seats.
