“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,” Barbossa said.
“These are not lockouts,” he said. “These layoffs are a consequence of the strike at Chicago Assembly Plant, because these three facilities must reduce production of parts that would normally be shipped to Chicago Assembly Plant.”
Chicago Assembly builds the Ford Explorer and Lincoln Aviator.
The 330 layoffs are in addition to 600 laid off from Michigan Assembly Plant, which builds the Ford Bronco and Ranger, beginning Sept. 15, bringing Ford’s total to 930 employees affected by strike-related layoffs, the company said Monday.
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The UAW, when contacted by the Detroit Free Press, didn’t immediately comment on the situation.
Factory workers watch, wait anxiously
Derek Call, a Hi-Lo driver at the Kansas City Assembly Plant in Claycomo, Missouri, said he knew last week that targeting Chicago Assembly would have consequences in other states.
“Every shift, we have two rail cars that unload parts from Chicago Stamping,” Call told the Free Press. “That’s all they do all day. It’s a substantial amount of parts for our body shop.”
Call, who started with Ford in Detroit 27 years ago, said he receives parts in his factory area from Chicago Stamping and takes them to employees building the Ford Transit Van. Thousands of UAW workers are watching and hoping for a tentative agreement, he said.
Contact Phoebe Wall Howard: 313-618-1034 or phoward@freepress.com. Follow her on X (formerly Twitter) @phoebesaid.
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