GM’s Lordstown plant is down to one shift starting tomorrow, as the plant faces a downturn in demand for the once-best-selling Chevy Cruze.
Lordstown lost its third shift last year, and earlier this year, GM said it was cutting about 1,200 workers on the second shift.
Dave Green, president of UAW Local 1112, which represents workers at the plant, says about half the people on the second shift have opted for early retirement. He’s still working to convince GM to send more product to Lordstown and bring back jobs.
“We’ve worked hard with management to make sure that we’ve put the complex in a competitive arrangement so that the corporation can make money on the product," Green said. "We just are looking for the corporation to invest in the members that are making the sacrifices to help them make that money."
Green says difficult decisions have already been made, such as combining the plant’s two union locals, outsourcing some jobs to other facilities and restructuring the plant’s healthcare plan.
