VAN PLANT RATTLED BY HANG NOOSE INCIDENTS
Cops, officials investigate hate crime
Windsor police, union leaders and Fiat Chrysler Automobile officials are searching for someone who targeted his black co-worker with a hangman’s noose on his vehicle — and again inside the Windsor Assembly Plant — during the minivan plant’s $2-billion retooling project.
The victim of the hate crime is from Windsor in his late 40s and one of hundreds of labourers on the job as a member of Labourers International Union of North America (LIUNA) Local 625.
The plant is currently on a lengthy shutdown, and there are no unionized autoworkers on site.
LIUNA officials said Monday the victim was shaken. He declined to speak about the incidents.
“FCA Canada has a zerotolerance policy regarding harassment or discrimination of any kind,” said LouAnn Gosselin, head of communications for Fiat Chrysler Canada. “This policy applies not only to our own employees, but also to vendors or contractors working at our facilities.”
The police department’s patrol investigative team is following up, but is only in the early stages of its investigation, said Staff Sgt. Dave Kigar.
“They will be doing interviewing, but also following up with the complainant and Chrysler security to make sure of the worker’s safety,” he said. “People should be allowed to come to work and feel safe.”
Police will be looking to see if there is any security video evidence, plus following up on information provided by other workers, Kigar said.
The initial incident occurred Thursday when the worker found a noose hanging on his truck, according to a union official.
Supervisors on the job were informed and reacted quickly. They gave the upset worker the rest of the day off work with pay. Dozens of workers involved with the plant’s retooling job were gathered Friday morning by supervisors and union stewards at the plant for a meeting and told the hang noose incident was unacceptable, according to a spokesperson for LIUNA Local 625.
But shortly after that meeting a second incident occurred with a hang noose found strung on a golf cart in the victim’s general work area, the union official said.
It’s unlikely security cameras at the plant were able to catch the person responsible. Workers inside the plant are being encouraged to come forward and provide information.
About 1,500 people have been working at the plant for the retooling. Along with hundreds of LIUNA labourers, there are also up to 600 members of International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers — most working 10 hours a day, seven days a week until the renovation is completed in late May.
There were so many electricians needed for the job, that there weren’t enough in Windsor to fill the demand. About half the number come from the city and several dozen others working inside the plant are from IBEW locals across Ontario, including Sarnia, London, Kitchener, Ottawa and Hamilton.
“There are definitely others who know what happened besides just the guy who did this,” said Karl Lovett, business manager for IBEW Local 773. “He won’t be able to keep it to himself and will have wanted others within his group to know what he did.
“This person will get caught.”
Once the worker responsible is found he will be facing “harsh consequences,” Lovett said.
If it turns out to be an IBEW worker, he will lose his union membership, he said.
“He will face expulsion,” Lovett said. “When I first heard about this it was unbelievable. The hair on the back of my neck stood up. In this day and age with all the racial and ethnic backgrounds we have, who is the person who would do this? It’s definitely unacceptable. There will be a price to pay for doing what they did.”
Rob Petroni, business manager for LIUNA Local 625, could not be reached Monday.
The hang noose incidents were described as being not only “hurtful,” but also “scary” for everyone involved, said Mohamad Alsadi, director of Human Rights for Unifor who oversees workplace training for union members and management.
“I’m really surprised to hear this happen in Windsor of all cities,” he said. “People who did this don’t understand the hurt they are causing. This (targeted) individual will never forget this. He will always be thinking ‘who did this and why. Why am I being treated this way?’ This does cause people a lot hurt and pain. I wish people who do this would understand that.”
Gosselin said Chrysler will investigate the allegations “fully and in a timely manner.”