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Ford workers agree to cost cutting deal
Monday, November 02, 2009OAKVILLE - Ford workers approved a cost-cutting agreement with management that includes shutting down a manufacturing plants in Canada in 2011, a move that will cut 1,500 jobs, the Canadian Auto Workers union said Sunday.
"No one should mistake workers' approval as satisfaction with the new agreement," CAW President Ken Lewenza said after the agreement passed with 83 percent of the vote.
"Members had faith in the union to negotiate the best agreement possible and protect their interests over the long term, but the problems faced by industry cannot be resolved at the bargaining table," Lewenza added.
Besides the loss of some 1,500 jobs at the Ford plant in St. Thomas, Ontario, that will close in the third quarter of 2011, the October 30 deal also includes a reduction in vacation, break times and co-payments on health care.
The agreement, which expires in September 2012, includes a commitment by the US automaker to keep at least 10 percent of its North American production in Canada.
The agreement, which covers 7,000 employees in Canada, includes plans to produce a product based on a new global platform at the Oakville Assembly Complex and additional investment for the Essex Engine Plant in Windsor.
No estimates were provided on the savings the cost-cutting agreement will entail.
The deal is the second cost-cutting agreement reached between the CAW and Ford in 18 months.
Although Ford did not accept bailout money from the US government like Chrysler and General Motors did, the CAW said Ford followed the pattern set out earlier in the year by its US rivals to cut significant portions of their Canada operations as part of restructuring.