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On the cusp

cartoonAlthough the writing had been on the wall since the production of the next-generation Camaro was said to be taking place south of the border, the loss of 1,000 jobs at Oshawa Assembly – more than a quarter of its work force – was no easier a pill to swallow.

This is the first in likely many announcements, big and small, to hit the plant over the next year when we find out whether car manufacturing in this city will continue or if it will become a thing of the past.

Needless to say, the plant needs to stay open. Being the largest employer in Oshawa makes it a significant part of the local economy, both for the sake of the money it pumps into the community through wages to workers, but also to other businesses that rely on cars being made at the plant.

The union, Unifor Local 222, is in a unique position for this round of contract negotiations. A majority of the plant’s workforce is reaching retirement age, meaning that new workers coming in can be signed in at a different tier structure, thus bringing costs down for the plant. Local 222 president Ron Svajlenko has brought up this point, and it is clearly part of the offer the union will be making to keep production going in Oshawa.

We can only hope that the union stands behind Svajlenko and this offer of either lower wages or a longer period for workers to obtain maximum salaries. The union can’t fight to keep things status quo because there are plenty of jurisdictions out there in North America that would be more than happy to play ball.

The political powers that be – the feds and the province – also need to do their part, knowing full well that what may seem like a large investment up front can pay off in spades down the line with increased economic activity.

Also, the finger pointing needs to stop. The union blames the province and the feds, the feds blame the province and the unions and so on. Oshawa MP Colin Carrie told The Oshawa Express last week that we need to put politics aside, and he’s right.

Rather than pointing fingers at one another, all parties need to get together and come up with a coordinated plan to keep GM in Oshawa.

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