By John McCrank
TORONTO (Reuters) - Buzz Hargrove, president of the
Canadian Auto Workers union said on Thursday he expects 300 job
cuts at Ford Motor Co's
"We'll lose a shift in our V8 engine plant in Windsor and, other than that, I don't see it having an impact anywhere else," Hargrove told Reuters.
The Windsor plant assembles V8 engines for pickups and SUVs. Ford said on Thursday it would cut back on their production as consumers shift to more fuel efficient vehicles.
Ford Canada was unavailable for comment.
Hargrove said the union would look into buyout packages, but with all the recent layoffs at Ford, which has struggled amid weak U.S. sales and high fuel prices, laid-off workers would likely be left with little protection.
"We've pretty well exhausted the buyout pool, or the retirement incentive pool ... so we're now down to the point, with the exception of Oakville, that anything that hits us means people are laid directly onto the street," he said.
Hargrove confirmed that a new, still-unnamed vehicle is slated to be produced in Ford's Oakville, Ontario, plant, probably some time next year.
Plans for the vehicle were said to be included in the three-year contract agreement between the union and the automaker that was ratified on May 4, but it was never officially announced.
The CAW said it would not look to revisit the contract terms.
(Editing by Rob Wilson)
© Reuters Limited. All Rights Reserved.
Reproduction or redistribution of Reuters content, including framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Reuters. Reuters shall not be liable for any errors or delays in the content, or for any actions taken in reliance thereon.
