July 10th, 2020

Gretzky: Ford has done nothing to save auto worker jobs in Windsor

WINDSOR – NDP MPP Lisa Gretzky (Windsor West) has released a statement following the end of the third-shift at the Chrysler assembly plant in Windsor on July 10:

“After a year of uncertainty, hundreds of workers on the third shift at Chrysler are losing their jobs today. Feeder plants in Windsor and Essex like Syncreon and Flex-N-Gate have also been forced to lay off workers as a result. This is an incredibly difficult day for our community, particularly in the midst of the pandemic, and yet the premier has not said a word about it or offered even one ounce of assistance over the past year.

Throughout this year, workers, union leaders and the Official Opposition NDP have all urged Doug Ford to take action. Instead, he refused to work with Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, Unifor and the auto workers to secure a new product for the plant that would build on their full flex line, and ignored repeated calls to develop a provincial auto strategy. I directly asked the premier to meet with workers countless times over the past year, and not once did he reach out or offer to help.

Now thousands of workers and their families will be falling off a financial cliff, while unemployment rates in the region are already sky-high, unable to qualify for income programs like CERB and facing an unstable economy that has lost thousands of jobs. I am heartbroken for these families and our entire community, and I am angry that the premier chose do nothing. I will continue to fight for a stable auto and manufacturing sector in Windsor-Essex and for the provincial government to develop a strategy to protect workers from lay-offs and create new jobs.”