Catherwood LibraryILR School

One week after securing a contract covering almost 20,000 workers with primary negotiations target General Motors (see WIT for September 18, 2002), the Canadian Auto Workers union is putting pressure on the Ford Motor Company for a favorable agreement. Having lost 15,000 Canadian auto-making jobs in the past three years, and facing the loss of 1,400 when Ford closes one of its Canadian truck plants by 2004, the CAW has given Ford one week to come up with ways to create hundreds of jobs or face a crippling strike. Under pressure from the investment community to go through with its plans to shutter the factory and take other steps to decrease overcapacity, Ford is considering several alternatives for creating new jobs in Canada to avoid work stoppages at factories producing engines for its most profitable vehicles.