Strike at Ontario GM plant sparks layoffs at 3 sites in U.S., Canada
Labour dispute ripples through industry as Magna suspends supply of auto parts
The union representing 2,500 striking workers at the General Motors CAMI assembly plant asked the automaker to return to the negotiating table on Thursday, as the company served at least 255 layoff notices at another plant in Ontario.
GM released a fact sheet Thursday afternoon that said it made “related production adjustments” at three facilities because of the labour dispute at GM’s CAMI facility in Ingersoll, Ont.
GM’s propulsion plant in St. Catharines, Ont., Spring Hill manufacturing plant in Tennessee, and engine operations plant in Flint, Mich., have been affected by layoffs.
In an emailed statement, GM Canada spokesperson Jennifer Wright said the adjustments “are short-term layoffs, but we are working to reduce the impact.”
The layoffs come as workers at the Ingersoll facility walked off the job in a dispute over job security. Talks between the company and Unifor Local 88 fell apart when the union could not win a commitment that GM would not move production of the Chevrolet Equinox to Mexico.
Tim McKinnon, chairperson for Unifor 199, which represents the St. Catharines plant that produces transmissions for the Equinox at the CAMI facility, said about 255 workers will be laid off starting Monday due to the strike. The company initially planned to lay off around 300 workers, McKinnon said, but temporary ancillary work will reduce that figure.
Notices have also been served at the St. Catharines Spencer ARL facility that the plant is going to be idled as of Monday, which will affect around 180 employees, Unifor 199 president Greg Brady said.
Despite the pending layoffs, Unifor 199 is in “100 per cent support” of the striking CAMI employees, Brady said. “For General Motors to take away a product and move it to Mexico is unacceptable.”
Local 88 president Dan Borthwick said the union had reached out to GM because “it would be a good opportunity to get back into negotiations. “We have a responsibility to our members and all the other factories that are affected by this work stoppage. The sooner we can get people back to work and back to what I call normal, that’s the best thing for everyone,” Borthwick said Thursday afternoon.
“With that said, we have some issues that need to be dealt with and we’re not straying away from them at this point.”
In response to the union’s request, GM reiterated a statement it released shortly after the strike began Sunday, encouraging Unifor “to resume negotiations and continue working together to secure a competitive agreement.”
A key sticking point in the discussions is a long-term commitment that would designate the plant as the lead producer of the next-generation Equinox.
Production of the new Equinox began at the plant in January, but the vehicle is also produced in two Mexican facilities. The union says it wants the lead producer designation, to ensure the CAMI plant would maintain core production levels in the event of a downturn or manufacturing changes in the auto industry.
The designation is particularly significant for the union, as about 400 employees were laid off this summer after GM shifted production of its GMC Terrain from the CAMI plant to Mexico.
“Our key issues remain the same,” Borthwick said. “When we first began, we took into consideration the effect it would have on our members and the community but we felt, at the end of the day, if we don’t address the job security issue in our plant and make sure we have jobs well into the future, it’s going to affect our feeder plants as well.”
The GM plants are not the only facilities that have so far been affected by the ongoing strike.
Auto parts supplier Magna International Inc. said in a statement it suspended supply of parts to the CAMI facility and that the “suspension of supply to CAMI affects the output at a few Magna facilities in Ontario.”