Dive Brief:
- Ford Motor Co. said Monday it temporarily laid off roughly 330 workers combined at its Chicago Stamping Plant and Lima Engine Plant in Lima, Ohio, due to the ongoing United Auto Workers strike against its Chicago Assembly Plant.
- The automaker said the stamping and engine plants must lower production because the work stoppage at the assembly plant dramatically reduced demand for the parts they manufacture.
- The temporary layoffs at the Chicago Stamping Plant took effect Sept. 30, and Ford furloughed workers at the Lima Engine Plant on Oct. 2. Ford has laid off a total of 930 workers due to the UAW strike, the company said.
Dive Insight:
The UAW has been on strike since Sept. 14, when its contracts with the Big Three automakers — General Motors, Ford and Stellantis — expired. However, rather than a full member walkout, the union has asked members to strike at targeted locations as part of its “stand-up strike” against the automakers.
The roving strikes aim to “keep the companies guessing” and to give UAW negotiators more power at the bargaining table, UAW President Shawn Fain said last month.
The strategy has disrupted manufacturing operations at all three automakers, leading them to temporarily lay off workers at non-striking facilities as the strike’s “ripple effect” takes hold.
“Our production system is highly interconnected, which means the UAW’s targeted strike strategy has knock-on effects for facilities that are not directly targeted for a work stoppage,” Ford said.
According to a Ford spokesperson, the automaker laid off 243 of the 1,044 workers at the Chicago Stamping Plant and 90 of the 1,403 workers at the Lima Engine Plant. The stamping and engine plants supply parts for the Chicago Assembly Plant, which builds the Ford Explorer, Police Interceptor Utility and Lincoln Aviator. According to a Ford spokesperson, 4,613 employees have been on strike at the facility since Sept. 29.
Ford President and CEO Jim Farley on Friday called the UAW’s decision to strike the automaker’s Chicago Assembly Plant “grossly irresponsible.”
But the automaker said the furloughs were not retaliatory.
“These are not lock outs,” Ford said.
In addition to the most recent furloughs, Ford temporarily laid off 600 employees at its Michigan Assembly Plant on Sept. 15. About 3,300 UAW workers from final assembly and paint are striking the plant.
