Canadian Auto workers protest job losses
Canadian auto outposts Windsor and Essex counties in Ontario have lost thousands of jobs in the recent past. Out of concern for the future of not only their jobs, but their communities and standard of living, nearly 40,000 people took part in a rally organized by the Canadian Auto Workers Union on Sunday, May 27th. The CAW claims that every single manufacturing job supports 12 non-autobuilding jobs, and with the big goings on down south with the sale of Chrysler and Ford's Way Forward, the union is understandably concerned. The rally, part of the CAW's wider "Manufacturing Matters" initiative, was held at Ford's Windsor, Ontario test track, and was intended to demonstrate the gravity of Canada's loss of manufacturing jobs. There will be pain associated with the domestic automakers scramble to stay alive, and part of that has taken the form of shipping jobs elsewhere. It's not just the car assembly plants, it's the multitudes of smaller suppliers that build the subassemblies and components the autoworkers actually assemble. It's happening in the US, as well, and it's tough to realize that in the jaws of the vice are families that have little recourse. Click the pic above for a slideshow of the Windsor rally with audio.
Thanks for the tip, Peter!
[Source: Autonorth]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Bert 10:22AM (5/29/2007)
Will work for Ford.... Let's see....
40K$ for a loaded ford product / 5 year lifespan (if that) = 8K$ per year.
With that kind of money the Big-ish Three-ish should be profitable in no time!
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JMa 10:40AM (5/29/2007)
What the CAW doesn't tell you is that for every CAW job lost at a Big 3 plant in Ontario, there has been a new hire at the non-unionized Toyota and Honda plants (with more to come as they continue to build new factories).
Who could have ever imagined that Corollas, Civics, RX350's... would out sell, Windstars, Crown Vics, Impalas...
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The Other Bob 10:53AM (5/29/2007)
"What the CAW doesn't tell you is that for every CAW job lost at a Big 3 plant in Ontario, there has been a new hire at the non-unionized Toyota and Honda plants (with more to come as they continue to build new factories)."
Like hell.
I challenge you to prove that statement.
Stratojet 2:04PM (5/29/2007)
There is absolutly no ground to this assesment. Canadian government will aggravate the situation with the "feebate" so called green program. Ill planned , ill executed. Even Honda says it is unfair. On top of this, the finance minister is from the Oshawa manufacturing region. What a clown! So Canadian with their taxes will subsidize Asian manufacturing who produce most of their components in Japan (ex Denso).
On top of this, Japan subsidize their auto industry via healthcare and by keeping their yen artificially too low .
I am not for the Unions ,but the CAW is right about this: manufacturing matters, and manufacturing is way much more than assembly plants. We assemble Ikea furniture at home, but Ikea is still a Sweedish corporation.
jay tee 11:05AM (5/29/2007)
JMa: Its more like for every 1000 lost jobs, there are 500 applying to toyota and honda plants, and of that 500, roughly 10-20 are being hired. Many recent articles in Canada and the USA were written about the large amount of people with lost jobs that were applying to Toyota and Honda plants, with VERY few being hired. Remember also that Honda and Toyota source most of their parts from outside the Great Lakes area, where the Big 2.8 has numerous local suppliers that produce the bulk of components locally produced cars. So, theoretically, for every worker the Big 2.8 lets go, and Toyota/Honda hire, 12 others are still out of a job. Great.
Also... production of "import brand" vehicles stands at roughly 800k units per year. Oshawa 1 and 2 alone produce roughly 500k a year. Add that to the total Oshawa produced GMT900's, Freestars/Edges/MKXs, Panther platform cars, Theta platform cars, and you will see that the production of foreign cars in Canada is nowhere even remotely close to the production of domestic cars.
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Barney 6:46PM (6/01/2007)
"you will see that the production of foreign cars in Canada is nowhere even remotely close to the production of domestic cars."
What domestic cars? In the last sixty years, I have yet to be told I was not Canadian. The USA is NOT part of Canada either. That makes the USA a foreign country as well.
jay tee 5:40PM (6/02/2007)
I currently live in the Oshawa area and see General Motors as a domestic manufacturer since GM's early history is very much entwined with GM Canada's history (ie, McLaughlin-Buick). While the Big Three may not be "born in Canada" they have been here for the better part of the last century and still invest largely in non-automotive sectors in each community.
As a Canadian that has lived in both St. Catharines and Oshawa, visited numerous cities in Southern Ontario (primarily General Motors-based cities), and know the general make-up of the Western New York area, I consider these communities very much domestic car based. These communities are just as dependant on the Big 3's success as any American city
Gardiner Westbound 11:34AM (5/29/2007)
Did they really think they could make lousy cars and strike every three years forever?
Toyota, Honda and their suppliers are building several plants in Southern Ontario. Its seems people want to buy their cars.
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Barney 10:17PM (5/29/2007)
"We assemble Ikea furniture at home, but Ikea is still a Sweedish corporation"
You do realize that Ford, GM and Chrysler are NOT Canadian! I don't see the association.
The medical plan in Canada applies to ALL Canadians, regardless of who they work for. The CAW also gets coverage so what's your point?
Brian 12:08PM (5/29/2007)
And another plant down....The union strikes again.....
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Big Rocket 12:30PM (5/29/2007)
Let's see what is happening here.
Step 1: Ford hired UAW labor to build cars in America
Step 2: UAW used threats of strikes and actual strikes to raise wages and benefits
Step 3: UAW labor became more costly
Step 4: Ford outsourced, and hired CAW labor to build cars in Canada
Step 5: CAW used threats of strikes and actual strikes to raise wages and benefits
Step 6: CAW labor became more costly
Step 7: Ford outsourced again
What was the CAW thinking? That they could become just as bloated as the UAW, and expect jobs to keep flowing in? Congratulations, you are now reaping what you sowed years ago.
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Tyk 12:34PM (5/29/2007)
Hahahhaaa.. f*ck you CAW and your UAW buddies! After UAW folds, you're next.. good riddance.
Funny how they didnt hold this in Cambridge or Alliston.. places where the auto industry is BOOMING... oh yea, it would prove that the CAW are f*cking irrelevant!
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Stéphane Dumas 12:39PM (5/29/2007)
I ponder if one day, the workers of the Canadian Honda and Toyota plants might heard the siren call of the CAW, just like the siren call of the UAW for the Toyota plant in Georgetown KY http://www.autoblog.com/2007/05/29/uaw-making-another-push-to-unionize-toyotas-georgetown-plant/
And in a more long-term with more and more plants in North America, does Toyota and Honda aren't afraid of having too much plants or plants with overcapacity in case if a big recession happens? Sure the chances then that scenario happens is thin, but the chances of offering voluntary buyouts like Nissan did might be bigger http://www.autoblog.com/2007/02/20/nissan-offering-voluntary-buyouts-to-all-tennessee-plant-workers/
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thetruth 12:43PM (5/29/2007)
If I run Ford or GM there wouldn't be a vehicle built on this continent! You can tell what is wrong with the work force just by reading this blog! Nobody owes anyone a living, you earn it.
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Don 4:28PM (5/29/2007)
All you have to do is remember this: for every American car you purchase, you support 2.5 times more American jobs than if you were to buy an import that was built in the US.
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Barney 10:27PM (5/29/2007)
"for every American car you purchase, you support 2.5 times more American jobs"
This is in Canada not the U.S.A.. Canadians have no obligation to any foreign country. They can buy from whomever, without feeling guilty. It's called "freedom of choice" and appears unique to only one country in North America.
Big Rocket 4:48PM (5/29/2007)
Stratojet @ May 29th 2007 2:04PM: "Japan subsidize their auto industry via healthcare and by keeping their yen artificially too low ."
See Myths #4 and #8 in the following post.
http://www.autoblog.com/2007/05/15/jeep-employees-pissed-about-chrysler-sale-use-photo-71730996-f/3#c4939028
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
Don @ May 29th 2007 4:28PM: "for every American car you purchase, you support 2.5 times more American jobs than if you were to buy an import that was built in the US."
According to Cars.com, the non-hybrid Toyota Camry is the most American of all passenger cars. "Factors include sales, where the car's parts are made and whether the car is assembled in the U.S." So if you truly care about what's good for America (versus what's good just for the UAW) buy a non-hybrid Camry.
http://www.cars.com/go/advice/Story.jsp?section=top&subject=more&story=amMade1206
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Barney 7:51PM (5/29/2007)
Buzz is also complaining that a new factory is being built in St.Catherines while one is being closed in Windsor. He would also complain if any factory was built in B.C. These are American cars and the Japanese cars are more popular in Canada. The CAW is becoming extinct and more factories will be coming to build more Japanese cars. There are already more being built while the American factories are being closed. The CAW is not for Canadians well being.
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Stratojet 12:46PM (6/01/2007)
Your comments are typical of somebody who works for government. Seems also that my comment was viewed as more relevant than your so-called free trade free market ideology from the 70's
Thanks again.
Barney 6:39PM (6/01/2007)
Stratojet @ Jun 1st 2007 12:46PM
Your comments are typical of somebody who works for government.
Are you on drugs? Do you know Canada is a country north of yours. "Free trade in the Seventies" How long have you been on drugs?