Remaining Lordstown plant workers in Ohio will be walking off the line earlier than planned, according to News 5 Cleveland. The factory will close on Wednesday March 6, which is tomorrow. That’s also two days early.
The factory, which has its first car roll off the line in 1966, has produced 16 million vehicles including the Chevrolet Impala, Caprice, Bel Air, Vega, Cavalier, Cobalt, and Cruze, which ended production last week.Â
GM’s Lordstown plant is one of five North American factories the automaker announced it would “unallocate” this year—four in the U.S. and one in Canada. However, one of those factories—Detroit-Hamtramck—received and production extension through January 2020. The factory will build the Cadillac CT6 and Chevrolet Impala for an additional seven months.Â
But that does little for Lordstown plant workers. Both politicians and other outside groups tried to save the jobs at the factory. The Drive It Home campaign, which is hosting its True Blue Friday event to show GM execs the community supports its workers and hopes the automaker will one day return to building cars at the factory, was an effort to get GM to further invest in the factory. A group of environmentalists even called on GM to bring a new green car to the factory, though that won’t happen as GM discontinued another green car—the Chevrolet Volt—due to low sales.Â
The United Auto Workers union is trying to keep the factory open. Last week, the UAW filed a lawsuit to keep three U.S. plants operating. The union charged GM with violating its contract by idling the plants. Though GM says it hasn’t violated the agreement, using some linguistic gymnastics to avoid breaking the contract.Â
The future of the factory is uncertain. Ohio Governor Mike DeWine (R) said last week he believes GM is looking for someone to take over the Lordstown factory, which reduces the chances of the automaker returning the factory anytime soon.Â
Comments
Yea because people want to work at dead plant just as much as people want to buy a Cruze [over a CUV].
Yeah, but if people are working there, then it isn’t exactly dead, is it?
They also built Camero’s I know I had one 1979 Z28 what a night mare in the warranty shop every 2 weeks and the 2nd year replaced the engine! A few years ago when they closed the Windsor Ot. transmission plant Generous Motors they threw useful valuable things into dumpsters to dam cheap to give some of it the workers and or charity, i am talking everything from tools to P C’s! Where I worked for 36 years the former Seagram Co. anything that was deemed not useful they would give us a gate pass for at no charge I brought a lot of stuff home.
Didn’t GM build the Camaros and Firebirds solely at the Van Nuys, California plant in the 70’s and 80’s before they moved it to Quebec?
They probably dumped their PCs because they didn’t want anyone to steal information on them.
Sorry again 79 Camero built at Norwood Ohio