About two weeks ago the word came from General Motors that an investment program will begin soon to prepare three plants to produce the newest version of the Ecotec engines.

It’s a $494-million project, and among the plants to be favored with that investment is GM’s big metalcasting complex in Defiance, OH … so, a big salute to the automaker for recognizing the importance of its basic operations.

On the other hand, the GM hasn’t told us much about how the money will be spent — which it might have been smart to do, considering who owns the company now.
 
Rather, the release used various adaptations of the phrase “fuel efficiency” to make us believe the money is being well spent. The real point of the release was to tell the world that GM is hiring about 550 workers.

The first and most prominent quote in the release was offered by automaker’s vice president for labor relations Denise Johnson:

“GM is transforming its product portfolio to reduce fuel consumption and emissions, and the next generation Ecotec engine is an integral part of that transformation,” Johnson stated. “The investment in state-of-the-art four-cylinder engines is another example of GM’s commitment to replace larger-displacement engines with more compact, advanced four-cylinder engines that optimize fuel savings and performance. We look forward to working with our union partners at these three plants to make this investment a success.”

Another quote in General Motors release about General Motors investment plans to manufacture new General Motors products was offered by UAW International Union v.p. and director Cal Rapson: “This investment is important because it supports manufacturing in the United States. All three plants have a strong reputation for building quality and focusing on the needs of our customers.”

Customers. Right. Sure.

Not long ago, a capital-improvement project, even at a fraction of this value, would bring forth pages of detail about the products to be produced, the technology to be deployed, and the timing of the project. There was good word-of-mouth publicity to be gained by exciting car enthusiasts, investors, and the public about the insight and capability of the company.

Now, we’re in a deep manufacturing rut and changes have been wrought that have bothered and disappointed almost everyone at some point. I’m not rapping GM for how it got into this position. And, to be clear, I am very glad they the automaker is hiring workers.

And, GM is not the only one pushing the notion that hiring = success.

But, an investment like this deserves some context — for the sake of GM's image and for the understanding of the public that cares, or ought to care, about how General Motors is improving.

Hiring workers on this scale when the U.S. economy has a chronic level of unemployment deceives readers and interested parties about the current state of affairs at GM. And, the prominence of this message in an announcement of this sort disappoints those of us seeking to reestablish confidence in a critically important company — and a critically important segment of the economy.