Unifor holds rally for CAMI workers

Hundreds of Unifor Local 88 supporters turned out Wednesday morning in Ingersoll at the CAMI plant to send a simple message to GM and the federal government – we want our jobs and want to get back to work. Lee Griffi photo

Lee Griffi, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Members of Unifor Local 88, along with other locals and labour supporters, held a Solidarity Action rally at Ingersoll’s CAMI manufacturing plant on Wednesday in response to General Motors’ elimination of production of the BrightDrop EV delivery van.

Local union chair Mike Van Boekel said he was pleased with the turnout early in the day but hoped more supporters would attend as the day went on. He added the rally was strictly to raise awareness.

“We want to make sure GM knows we aren’t going anywhere and also to send a message to the federal and provincial governments that they need to keep the pressure on.”

He added the BrightDrop van may not have sold well, but the bigger problem with their employer is Trump’s rhetoric south of the border.

“He doesn’t want any (automotive) investment outside of the States and wants all the jobs to go back there. GM sells hundreds of thousands of vehicles in Canada, and they make billions here, so they can supply jobs to Canadians.”

Van Boekel explained Unifor had a constructive conversation with the federal government last week, but he is concerned about the auto sector as a whole.

“It looks like they are paying attention now. Unfortunately, Chrysler took a plant down the week before ours. If they all keep doing this, there will be nothing left in a month. The bleeding has to stop somewhere.”

One of the potential uses for the facility, and something that came out of talks with the feds, is a military vehicle. Van Boekel said his members are willing to build anything to keep the plant going.

“We proved it with the battery. We took brand-new technology that was state of the art, and we hit it out of the park within a year. We will build anything they want. We’re just looking for jobs.”

Laid-off CAMI employees are receiving 80 per cent of their normal wage and will for months to come, but Van Boekel is worried about what happens when people’s income dries up.

“A year goes by fast, and if you have both parents in here and you are losing your pay, it hurts. I think our members could live through it if we had something signed within 18 months that would change everything over again; then there is light at the end of the tunnel.”

He said employees can make some adjustments and survive, but if the plant were to close, it would fire a hole right through Oxford County and the surrounding areas.

One of the affected employees is Brantford resident Mike Horne, a 21-year CAMI veteran who has lived through the strike of 2017, COVID-19 and multiple layoffs. He said news of the shutdown was devastating, particularly since he was one of the 300 workers scheduled to return to work.

“I was really happy about coming back and it literally broke my heart. It’s been a downward spiral with a bit of depression. Thank God for good weather to get outside to keep my mind off things, but it’s been tough.”

Horne’s two children are attending university, and he said while the 80 per-cent pay is a blessing, it is still a stressful time.

“I am thankful my wife is a vice-principal, where she helps out quite a bit, but we always feel the financial burden as a man. I have been actively looking (for work), updating my resume and it’s time to start thinking about something else.”

The event included music and a pair of food trucks while transport truck drivers and others honked horns in support of the workers. Other union members also came out.

“This shows solidarity, not just from 88 but from the other locals that took the time to come and support us,” Horne said.

Over the 40 years CAMI has operated in Ingersoll, Horne said the workforce has consistently answered the call to build a quality product, no matter what it was.

“We have been challenged on what we can build, and we’ve come through every time. We made it work, we put our heads down and helped the company because they are helping us. We need these jobs to survive.”   

He added Trump is at the top of the list of those to blame for the situation the auto sector is in but said our politicians could have been more proactive.

“I think our government could have gotten ahead of this. They knew it was coming and could have done things to get the ball rolling, but they waited and reacted to the situation.”

Auto manufacturing creates thousands of spin-off jobs, mainly at parts plants located near facilities like CAMI. Van Boekel said those jobs are also worth fighting for.

Lana Payne is Unifor’s national chair, and she explained Canada’s auto industry is under direct attack.

“President Trump has made it clear he wants our auto jobs on U.S. soil, and now automakers are caving to his pressure by shifting production south of the border.”

She added it doesn’t stop at the auto sector.

“Trump is taking aim at the foundation of Canada’s industrial economy – forestry, steel, aluminum, heavy-duty truck and bus manufacturing, and other sectors that sustain good, unionized, middle-class jobs in communities across this country.”