Pasadena, CA -- (SBWIRE) -- 06/20/2011 -- BMW is planning to cut around 100 jobs at its parts distribution center in Ontario, California. The employees have contract jobs with BMW and their contracts expire on August 31.

The Teamsters Union has launched a campaign which is targeting BMW dealers with appeals to support these workers. BMW on its part has said that it wants to hand over the center to a third party when its contract on the center expires. But a union official has said that BMW’s announcement came as a surprise to the center’s employees. They were not given a chance to negotiate a new contract.

The workers at the center are paid around $25 per hour in addition to benefits similar to regular BMW employees. They are responsible for finding the right parts out of 200,000 vehicle parts in the center and getting them to the auto shops and dealers. The Teamsters Union is banking on the fact that the dealers will appreciate the fact that these workers are very knowledgeable about the parts required for each model. And such employees make sure that the dealers and auto shops get the right parts shipped to them.

The decision to rehire the current employees will be left up to the center’s new owners, which BMW has not yet picked. AutomotiveCrossing, a job aggregator site for jobs available in the auto industry has found around 20,000 jobs in the industry.