Automakers to Suspend Production at North American Plants

All automakers who operate production plants in Ontario, will be closing their plants in North America (Canada, U.S. and Mexico). They are going to be conducting intense cleaning at their manufacturing facilities, to help ensure the safety and health of their workers during the COVID-19 / Coronavirus pandemic.

FCA is planning to ceasing operations at its North America plants, including those in Windsor and Brampton, Ontario, until the end of March. The closure will be done in a progressively. A re-evaluation will take place at the end of the month.

“Working with the UAW, and having visited many of our plants yesterday, we need to ensure employees feel safe at work and that we are taking every step possible to protect them,” said Mike Manley, CEO, FCA. “We will continue to do what is right for our people through this period of uncertainty.”

General Motors will be suspending all manufacturing operations in North America, including those in Canada. GM will have a “systematic orderly suspension” of production. Currently the suspension is expected to last till March 30, but a weekly review will take place.

“GM and the UAW have always put the health and safety of the people entering GM plants first, and we have agreed to a systematic, orderly suspension of production to aid in fighting COVID-19/coronavirus,” said Mary Barra, Chairman and CEO, GM. “We have been taking extraordinary precautions around the world to keep our plant environments safe and recent developments in North America make it clear this is the right thing to do now. I appreciate the teamwork of UAW President Rory Gamble, UAW Vice President Terry Dittes and local leadership as we take this unprecedented step.”

Ford Motor Company is also suspending all North America production until March 30, after shifts end on March 19.

“We’re continuing to work closely with union leaders, especially the United Auto Workers, to find ways to help keep our workforce healthy and safe – even as we look at solutions for continuing to provide the vehicles customers really want and need,” said Kumar Galhotra, President of North America, Ford. “In these unprecedented times, we’re exploring unique and creative solutions to support our workforce, customers, dealers, suppliers and communities.”

The Detroit three automakers have also created a Canadian task force that includes the leaders of Unifor, FCA Canada, Ford of Canada, and General Motors of Canada. The task force is meant to help with implementing enhanced protections for manufacturing and warehouse employees at the brands during the COVID-19/Coronavirus pandemic.

Honda will also suspend production at its North American plants, including Canada (Alliston, Ontario) beginning on March 23, with production set to resume on March 31.

UPDATE: Toyota is suspending production at its automobile and components plants in North America, including Canada (Woodstock and Cambridge, Ontario) from March 23 to April 3, with production expected to resume on on April 6.

A statement from Toyota reads: “This action is being taken to protect the health and safety of our employees, key stakeholders and communities, as well as a result of the significant market decline due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. We will continue to monitor the situation and take appropriate action in a timely manner.”