GM to close Windsor plant, 1,400 job cuts 'shock' UAW

[OhioChick]

Source: The Ottawa Citizen 2008

Published: Tuesday, May 13, 2008

WINDSOR - General Motors said yesterday it would close its Windsor transmission factory in 2010 after its current production mandates are finished, leaving as many as 1,400 workers jobless.

"We have worked extensively with our labour and government partners, but have been led to the unavoidable conclusion that there are no available replacement products in the relevant time frame for this location," Arturo Elias, GM Canada president, said.

GM said the Windsor plant will close in the second quarter of 2010.The future of the Windsor plant had been uncertain because GM had not announced a new product for the factory beyond the current transmission. The company intends to build its new six-speed transmissions elsewhere.

"This came as an incredible shock to us," Buzz Hargrove, president of the Canadian Autoworkers union, said. "This is devastating news."





Read more: http://www.canada.com/ottawacitizen/news/bustech/story.html?id=08c2293d-8953-4c5c-8ac9-5e30ab28bba9

[jimshoes]

1. Devastating news

That sums it up pretty well. Hope they can work something out up there and keep their plant open. My condolences to the folks in Windsor.

[saigon68]

2. The company intends to build its new six-speed transmissions elsewhere.

China

The $.28 cents an hour workers are too good to pass up.

Besides they work like dogs for a hand full of Rice

[Kolesar]

4. GM is pitching a $700-million project that would see it make more fuel-efficient transmissions ...

... at its St. Catharines facility and step up environmental research in Oshawa.

edit: St. Catherines and Oshawa are in Ontario, Canada

[redqueen]

7. Pitching or planning?

It's a bit late in the game to still be thinking about options, if they're announcing plant closures. It'd be nice if it didn't go the same way the NAFTA jobs in Mexico did (to China) but... I wouldn't bet on it.

[Kolesar]

9. I don't know

I just quoted the original article

[Acadia Blue]

11. If they build it in China they can keep it there because I won't buy

a car from them in the future.

[HereSince1628]

3. "The company intends to build its new six-speed transmissions elsewhere."

I'm sure that it does.

[ingac70]

5. UAW and CAW not the same. n/t

[Dont_Bogart_the_Pretzel]

6. Why don't the "big three" just get on with it and

sell out Toyota and Honda because the way it looks like it is going, before long their won't be anymore to layoff. :rant: <<--??-->> :sarcasm:

[Kolesar]

8. "sell out Toyota and Honda"?

[Dont_Bogart_the_Pretzel]

10. I meant to say, sell out TO Toyota & Honda

2010 Toyota F150 or
2010 Ford Prius

[Occulus]

12. ow big are these huge empty factories in Detroit?

Gov. Granholm just announced some sort of media program intended to attract Hollywood into Michigan. Ironically, I'm learning CG modeling and animation, so this is of interest to me.

So how big are these abandoned spaces? It seems to me that they could be renovated and used as sound stages....

[Omaha Steve]

13. Canada our closest friend suffers too

K&R!