WEST POINT, GA—Four people who unsuccessfully applied for jobs at the Kia Motors assembly plant here are suing the company, claiming they were discriminated against because they had belonged to a union.
COLUMBIA, SC—EcoDual Inc., a manufacturer of dual-fuel conversion systems for heavy-duty trucks, will $13 million assembly plant here. The facility is expected to generate 307 new jobs in the next five years.
PULASKI CITY, TN—Magneti Marelli has opened a $54 million assembly plant here to make automotive lighting. The facility is expected to produce 5 million assemblies annually by 2016.
SMYRNA, TN—A maintenance technician has been killed in an accident at the body shop of Nissan’s assembly plant here. The technician, Michael Hooper, 43, had worked at the plant for 21 years.
WASHINGTON—U.S. worker productivity grew a modest 0.5 percent rate from January through March after having declined in the previous quarter. Weak productivity growth could boost hiring if consumers and businesses spend more.
CHATTANOOGA, TN—Volkswagen is aiming to reduce its worldwide energy consumption by 25 percent and triple the renewable energy it uses by 2018, part of a program called Think Blue.
WASHINGTON—The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is suing the BMW assembly plant in Spartanburg, SC, over its use of criminal background checks to screen out job applicants or fire employees. The agency says the policy discriminates against African Americans.