Brett Neely

Image by Getty Images via Daylife

One part of the story about General Motors’ bankruptcy that has been relatively under-covered in the US has to do with GM’s European unit, Opel, which is based in Germany but has factories across Europe. I visited Antwerp, Belgium, where Opel has a factory that is in danger of closing.

I did two stories for Marketplace about what’s going on there. One story is about the impact of the German government’s bailout of Opel. It’s an election year here and the bailout came, big surprise, with strings attached. Namely, that no German factories should be closed. Which means that the plants outside of Germany are at a much greater risk of closure. It’s causing an ugly, little spat within the European Union, albeit one that’s been kept relatively hushed-up.

The second story was about current and former workers and what they’re thinking while the whole long, drawn-out sale process (once the final deal is announced, it will be pretty clear what gets shut and what stays open) is underway. The story is really about what’s it like to worry about losing your job in Europe, as opposed to the US. As you can probably imagine, it’s stressful, but less so than in the States.

Listen and enjoy!