GM tells union of planned May 18 factory relaunch
UAW hopes for robust testing for auto plant workers
General Motors will begin to ramp up its North American assembly plants next week to restart production starting May 18.
In alerts sent to United Auto Workers members Tuesday, which were obtained by the Free Press, plant managers at GM’s Lansing Delta Township Assembly and Flint Assembly, Flint Engine Operations and Flint Metal Center facilities said GM will publicly announce its restart date Wednesday.
The company idled its North American assembly plants in March at the union’s urging amid the growing coronvairus threat.
The memos read: “GM plans to begin a limited, cadenced, and site-specific approach for a return to the workplace in many of our North American manufacturing facilities. We are targeting Monday, May 18, and we are collaborating with state governments and union partners. We are confident that we have an approach that allows us to move into this next phase with safety as our guide.”
A GM spokesman declined to comment on the memos, but issued a statement that said: “We’ve communicated our target restart timing with our employees and other key stakeholders. We’ll share more information publicly tomorrow morning as part of our first quarter financial results communication.”
GM will announce its first-quarter earnings Wednesday morning prior to the markets opening.
A UAW spokesman said he was unaware of a finalized restart date.
In an earlier statement Tuesday, UAW President Rory Gamble said the UAW has and continues to talk with all of its employers and employment sectors about the safety and security surrounding reopening worksites.
“In the case of the Big 3, through the Task Force we have had an ongoing dialogue and we have supported a number of measures put in place to address Center for Disease Control and World Health Organization guidelines from FCA, GM and Ford to protect our health and safety in the plant,” Gamble said. “Our volunteer members and the companies have done great work to reconfigure plants to achieve this safety goal.”
The union advocates for as much testing as possible and full testing when it becomes available.