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CTV News | GM committed to Oshawa plant, CAW president says

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Home : Top Stories : GM committed to Oshawa plant, CAW president says

GM committed to Oshawa plant, CAW president says

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toronto.ctv.ca

Date: Thu. Jan. 24 2008 10:24 AM ET

Canadian Auto Workers president Buzz Hargrove says he is concerned about a report that General Motors has scrapped plans to build some rear-wheel-drive cars at its giant plant in Oshawa, Ont.

Such a move could threaten thousands of jobs and the long-term future of the largest vehicle assembly plant in Canada, industry sources told The Globe and Mail.

The sources said the automaker has decided to axe production of the rear-wheel-drive version of the Chevrolet Impala, which was scheduled to represent half the output of a leading-edge flexible assembly plant now under construction in Oshawa.

Production of rear-wheel-drive Cadillac and Buick sedans originally slated for Oshawa will now be shifted instead to Lansing, Mich., the sources added.

Hargrove says he hasn't yet received any official confirmation of any revised plan.

"If General Motors has made a decision not to build rear-wheel-drive vehicles in Oshawa, they haven't informed us," Hargrove told CTV.ca on Thursday.

"Would we would be surprised if the move was made now? No, given the new (fuel economy) law in the United States."

Hargrove says the new U.S. legislation requires automakers to build vehicles that reach an average of 35 miles per gallon (6.7 litres per 100 kilometres) by 2020.

He added details of the proposed Cadillac and Buick productions had not yet been finalized.

While Hargrove said he was concerned about the report, he remains optimistic that new work will retain jobs.

"There's an obligation on the part of General Motors to put new product in there," he said. "What that will be, we don't know."

Hargrove said GM has injected $2.5 billion into the Oshawa plant for new production. The Ontario government has given $235 million for the cause, while the federal government under Paul Martin handed over $200 million when the Beacon project was announced in 2005.

GM has confirmed that production of a new rear-wheel-drive Chevrolet Camaro muscle car will begin in Oshawa this year.

Thursday's report comes as GM is preparing for contract talks with the Canadian Auto Workers union this summer.

Comments are now closed for this story

Janet
said

First - I would like to know why a Canadian plant cannot produce a fuel efficient car, the same as what the United States will do. Secondly I feel terribly bad about the loss of jobs in the Auto Industry but lets be honest - you have to look at he wages that are being paid out and the union fees that are being taken out of those wages. Auto workers are being very well paid .....maybe this is why jobs are going to the U.S. The dollar also has a factor in there but when will the Auto workers give a bit to save their jobs. It is not up to Ottawa to keep bailing out the industry when the Union and the workers are not willing to give anything. I own and operate a small business in Ontario and when times are tough we eat hamburg instead of steak.

DS
said

Good ol'Buzz. one minute he is telling GM he won't negotiate concessions to their fat collective agreement. the other minute he is saying that GM is committed to Oshawa.

Shamaro
said

If the GM employees in Oshawa wish to continue to be employed, I believe that they're Union will have to bein to make some major concessions during negotiations this summer to show the automotive industry, that the Union is willing to work with it's Employer to help compete in this very competetive automotive industry or risk losing even more jobs for the sake of a few more benefits and more money. I hope that the Unions leaders and those who belong to the CAW understand that people are doing the exact same thing as they are for less money, very few benefits and to top it off, the Quality is on par with theirs.


aj in calgary
said

OK, everybody buy a CAMARO

Can the feds give a rebate on the CAMARO?

My 16 yr old needs a car. buy a CAMARO.


Jim McB
said

Canada's non unionized plants are doing well in the market, their products are superior to the big three in every regard.

Perhaps if GM wants to recover its market share and build reasonable cars they should look to their workers and possibly embrace the idea of a profit share rather than paying a union huge sums of money.


stubblejumper
said

It was just a couple of years ago that the economy in Sask. was in real trouble. At that time we were told that if you couldn't make it either change occupations or leave your industry. Well we tightened our belts, ate hamburger, took in other income(off farm) and rode out the storm. If you believe in your industry Buzz, do what is good for your members and give in a little and keep your members working. By the way Buzz we could have eaten steak but we chose to eat hamburger and sell our steaks to Ontario. Just a thought!


Keith
said

It would be a shame if some of these over priced auto workers have to maybe give up some of there luxuries like the boat,cottage,snowmobile,four wheeler,trailer at the park,nice shinny pickup or suv.
Do they not realize every time they get a raise it effects everyone. They need the money so GM or whoever has to increase the price of there products. The ripple effect. It has to stop somewhere if every year you need more and more. We all may be making more money now but how much more bang for your buck are you getting now compared to 10 years ago?
The biggest cause for inflation is greed.


mike
said

I was waiting for all of the Camaro bashers to come out of the wood work ! Low and behold it only took about 5 mins.Oshawa will get a new product and it will be FWD/AWD and it will be built within the flex system. Everyone take a deep breath and relax. The Camaro is a small market product that people are willing to pay for, it's the Impala that needs to be upgraded to meet new fuel requirements. STOP BASHING THE CAMARO AND GM.


Roch
said

Someone should tell Buzz he is not a GM spokesman.

Excessive union costs and counter-productivity is the reason why GM cannot compete with Toyota.


Al
said

Unless we start to be independent and make our own cars and brands, we will always be dependent on US for jobs and as soon as they go in a rough patch, Canadian jobs are the first to get scrapped. When are we going to learn and do something about it!?


experienced reader
said

JANET - get your facts straight!! The Impala has great fuel economy for the size. Secondly this car is designed for industrial use such as police cruisers and cabs. Also supports three child seats!

My husband has a cruiser, err I mean an impala. Our last road trip we were getting as low as 6.9 L per 100 km!!

Do you not think that perhaps GM management is looking at reducing labour costs and reclaiming back profit that they should be realizing otherwise??







James
said

How about other carmakers reaching 35MPG???? Never seen a Toyota V8 truck obtain this? Does Honda SUV's reach this? One way to help with obtaining better fuel economy is something called a manual transmission! I know it makes the driver work a little more heaven forbid as they already are to relaxed driving!


Peggi
said

As a Union member --it's time for Buzz to beat!!!!I'm so tired of him.


Roch
said

experienced reader needs to get their facts straight.

There is no fuel economy "for the size", there is just fuel economy.
GM do not produce a vehicle to compete with Yaris.


AG
said

My Smart Car gets 75 mile per gallon!


Ian
said

If North Americans bought North American products, there would be no need to beat up unionized workers and wish unemployment on them, which is probably born out of jealousy and a desire to ease their consciences.


Roger T
said

How many cars does one need in a year.....seriously, these corporations keep coming up with new !!models/styles!! is really nothing new, they've only added a few features which they could have done already. Instead they need to release them in phases so they can bilk consumers.

I won't be buying a new car anytime soon with the R word looming. I can wait til car makers include most of the features needed instead of extra charges for every little items.




DM in NB
said

I've said it before, and I'll say it again...unions will be the death of this country. If GM dumped all the unioned employees and opened the exact same plant with non-union workers, they would be far more profitable. Take a look at Toyota for a prime example.

The unions of this country are going to turn the economy back into the 1920s-era in which they were created. Dump the foolish unions.


JJ
said

The union has its reason to exist; to protect the workers from unreasonable demand from the management. On the other hand, the union has to be reasonable too.


Tom Blackwell
said

GM has nobody to blame but themselves for their loss of sales, and consequently, loss of high-paid jobs. They continue to lag behind Toyota and Honda in long-term reliability, overall fuel efficiency, and practicality.
GM has always been slow to change, but the consumers lose patience with their broken promises of reliability.
If they want to beat the best, they have to build more reliable cars, with better space utilization, and better fuel efficiency.
Otherwise, they will continue to dig their own grave.


Ed Simkin
said

Now everyone come in off the ledge and please will you anti-union pro big business stooges stop celebrating until you find out what G.M. is really going to do. After all this is a contract year and who could forget all those fools waiting in giant lines in the freezing cold for a chance at applying for jobs that never materialized. This political ploy demonstrates the lengths G.M. will go to strengthen their bargaining position.


Rhett
said

In order for Canada to compete it needs good engineers but, unlike the U.S.A., Canada treats its engineers like crap.


Daryl
said

Just as long as I can drive my Camaro next year with the top down and the wind flowing through my mullet, I'll be happy.


Steve G
said

Just a note to the union bashers-GM's Oshawa facilities are the most productive auto plants in North America (including your beloved non-union Toyota plants).


Realist.....
said

First off...A union does serve it's purpose. Even if you are not unionized, you have benefited from them...first off minimum wage. Currently it is the unions pushing to have the minimum wage brought up to 10$ and hour (if I recall they had a big part of the minimum wage being established). A lot of the laws that protect the workers were faught for by unions. So to be brutally honest, GM is in this situation because of it's own managenment...point blank.


Don
said

I don't really belive my comments will make any difference but seeing as I am an eternal optimist here goes.

Unions do have a role to play. There are capitalists in the world who make their fortune at the cost of their employees. There are others who do not show any respect for their employees. Both of these scenarios give rise to unions. However, when things get tough in the economy we must all tighten our belts. In my opinion the autoworkers union and GM should actually try working together. Perhaps there will be no raises. Perhaps the wage may actually go down. However, jobs must be saved. This means being competitive. If the employees are willing to do what takes to compete then GM must agree to lower its prices and raise its quality.


Shamaro
said

There is nothing wrong with unions as long as the unions are willing to work with the employer to improve their very own job security. The CAW has done a good job in protecting their members and when the profits were high with their employers like GM, they made sure that GM shared some of that profit with the employee's, however times have changed and I think the way Unions do business will have to change if they want job security and long term jobs to stay here in Canada. The days of big pension pay outs, high payrolls etc. are going to have to come to an end to allow these companies to compete with the merging countries in the automotive industry like China and India. Mexico is the least of our problems, believe me.


Fool me once shame on you...
said

....I stopped buying GM cars when I got tired of paying for an inferior quality of engineering which designed in "planned obsolescence" and I realized my cars were specifically designed to start breaking down after about 12 months.

The auto workers biggest issue is the very product they are being asked to assemble. If people continue to buy better products like Hondas or Toyotas they won't have their jobs. I don't plan on switching back to a GM, Ford and especially Chrysler anytime soon.


Shaun proud & Layed off
said

The production of cleaner vehicles should not be equated with the production of smaller vehicles. Canadian Auto plants produce mostly larger vehicles. Therefore, federal government programs like “feebate” encourage people to purchase more imports – worsening our trade deficit, and eliminating more Canadian jobs. Fuel efficiency regulations according to class of vehicle are a much better way to fairly compel automakers to improve fuel efficiency of all their vehicles


Mike
said

Well as I union member I and many of the people that I work for would love to vote the union out of our plants.
All they do is collect our union dues and althought they say they represent us they do not.
Our local is in the companies back pocket and generally look out for what is important for the company and the union executive.
Union members are not the only ones with trailer and cottages and boats. Stop and look at what Buzz and his group of executives earn.Stop and look at what the management of these companies ear as well. Buzz is more worried about the existance of the union so he is not out of work.
He could care less about the membership.
Unions only protect the people that dont deserve to be protected.
He has no clue of what he is talking about.



GM Worker
said

It's funny that no one has told Buzz about whats going on, we were told by our local a couple of weeks ago this very same story.
It's hard to believe anything Buzz says these days. Time to go buddy. Most of us see right through you now.


Brian
said

I am sick and tired of constantly reading people green with envy for unionized workers whenever any story about them comes up, yet instead of organizing themselves to try to get the same deal as unionized workers they bash the unions. Greedy capitalists will be the death of this country, with their plans to outsource all our jobs and turn careers that our fathers worked hard in and had job stability into "flexible" (read: no job security) low wage jobs without benefits. If you want to have the same wages and job security as auto workers, do what they did in the 30s and 40s and organize.

Also, if you enjoy weekends, maternity leave, the 8 hour day, the 40 hour week, and not leaving body parts at work, thank a union.

That being said, I am not exactly a fan of Buzz after he betrayed the basic principles of unionism with his Magna antics.


Craig.
said

If any one of you auto worker bashers think for one second that cars would be cheaper if we just gave back some of our wages you're in dreamland. How come cars produced in Mexico with much cheaper labour and sold here are not much cheaper to buy? If GM put out the hiring flag every one of you would be running to fill out an application. And why not? Who doesn't like to make good money? And by the way, GM does make good cars and trucks. Don't believe me? Then do some research.


Pete
said

My wife just leased a Pontiac Wave. This car gets great fuel economy and it leases for about $80/month less than a Fit, Versa or Yaris. The Big 3 need more of these.


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