A good sign

When word came that General Motors would not be making any decisions on the future of Oshawa Assembly until 2016, there was some concern among those worried about the plant’s future.

When it became official that the automaker was going to shift production of the Chevrolet Camaro south of the border, resulting in the loss of 1,000 workers at the plant – whether through incentivized retirement or possible layoffs – there was even more concern that the end was nigh for the plant.

However, those watching the future of the city’s largest employer and long-time stalwart got a good piece of news when the automaker announced it would be investing $12 million into the plant in order to boost production numbers of the popular Chevrolet Equinox, extending the life of the consolidated line until 2017.

Now granted, the $12-million investment doesn’t seem like much, considering the other investments the company has made in its plants in recent weeks, including $877 million for plant upgrades in Flint, Michigan, and $1.4 billion for plant upgrades in Arlington, Texas.

Ron Svajlenko, the president of Unifor Local 222, hit the nail on the head when he said that while it’s not overwhelmingly good news, it’s still good news.

“It’s good for us to keep our plant going,” he says. “A positive thing if they continue to build is that it’s easier for me to make a pitch for product. It has some silver linings.”

And that pitch for new product is coming up soon. With union negotiations south of the border set to wrap up, that means Unifor and the future of automotive manufacturing in Oshawa is next on GM’s plate.

And if the automaker is willing to put money into the plant ahead of those negotiations, and give the plant a product commitment for the next couple of years, that only bodes well for future product commitments at the plant.

There’s still a long way to go in learning the future of the plant, but the path just got a little bit brighter.