Strikes at suppliers force idling of two Canadian auto plants
Last Updated: Friday, February 29, 2008 | 1:01 PM ET
CBC News
Strikes at parts suppliers are forcing General Motors and Chrysler to put the brakes on production at two Canadian assembly plants.
General Motors' Oshawa, Ont. truck plant will temporarily shut down because a strike at a supplier is causing a parts shortage.
The Oshawa plant, along with GM pickup truck plants in Flint, Mich., and Fort Wayne, Ind., are slated to halt production following the end of the second shift on Friday night, a GM spokesperson said Friday.
A GM plant in the Detroit suburb of Pontiac shut down Thursday.
All four of the idled GM plants produce the Chevrolet Silverado and the GMC Sierra.
The parts shortage is due to a strike at American Axle and Manufacturing Holdings Inc. The New York Times reported that GM is American Axle's biggest customer, accounting for 80 per cent of its business.
In Windsor, Ont., a Chrysler plant is already shut down due to a strike at one of its suppliers.
Chrysler's minivan plant shut down after about 175 workers at TRW Automotive, represented by the Canadian Auto Workers, walked off the job Thursday afternoon.
TRW makes suspension frames for Chrysler. Within three hours of the start of the strike, Chrysler stopped production at its minivan plant.
Wages are at the centre of the TRW contract dispute.
Share Tools
Latest Toronto News Headlines
- Councillors vote down downtown Toronto casino
- Toronto councillors have killed the building of a downtown casino, a controversial issue that Mayor Rob Ford had recently suggested was unlikely to go forward as a result of provincial government waffling. more »
- Only 1 set of human remains found at Millard farm, police say
- Hamilton police have confirmed that they are dealing with only a single set of human remains at the Waterloo region farm of Dellen Millard. more »
- 'Very upset' Harper wants fast Senate spending reform
- Prime Minister Stephen Harper told the Conservative caucus this morning that he's "very upset" about the recent conduct of some senators and his own office, and he wants Senate spending rules tightened quickly. more »
- Horwath says NDP will support Ontario Liberal budget
- Ontario NDP Leader Andrea Horwath says her party will support the Liberal budget, avoiding a spring election, after the premier agreed to the NDP's call for an independent financial accountability officer. more »
Must Watch
Top News Headlines
- Search for Oklahoma tornado survivors nearly complete
- Rescue workers raced to complete the search for survivors and the dead in the Oklahoma City suburb where a mammoth tornado destroyed countless homes, cleared lots down to bare red earth and claimed 24 lives, including those of nine children. more »
- Senate sends Duffy expense audit for 2nd internal review
- The Senate decided to send Senator Mike Duffy's audit report back to its internal committee for a second review, despite objections from the Liberal Senate leader, who argued the RCMP should be tasked with the job. more »
- Kids from levelled Oklahoma schools recount deadly tornado
- Children from two Oklahoma schools levelled Monday by a powerful tornado are recounting what it was like to survive the "loud" and "scary" twister, while rescuers near the end of their search for any other remaining survivors or bodies. more »
- Only 1 set of human remains found at Millard farm, police say
- Hamilton police have confirmed that they are dealing with only a single set of human remains at the Waterloo region farm of Dellen Millard. more »
- Jodi Arias gives jailhouse interviews as jury mulls execution
- In a surprise jailhouse interview just hours after a jury began deliberating her fate, Jodi Arias spoke out Tuesday about her murder trial, her many fights with her legal team and her belief that she 'deserves a second chance at freedom someday.' more »
- Rob Ford faces more calls to address crack allegations
- Unknown remains found on Dellen Millard's farm
- Councillors vote down downtown Toronto casino
- Brampton man reported missing in Australia
- Only 1 set of human remains found at Millard farm, police say
- Missing Toronto woman's parents unfazed by Millard link
- Man shot dead at barbecue near Ossington and Dundas
- Horwath says NDP will support Ontario Liberal budget
- 'Very upset' Harper wants fast Senate spending reform
Toronto traffic with Joan Chang
