American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings is to close the largest axle plant in its Detroit area manufacturing complex and move the production to Mexico, a United Auto Workers union official was quoted as saying.
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“People are very upset about losing their jobs,” UAW Local 235 president Bill Alford told Reuters. “They’re very upset that a company with the word ‘American’ in its name is moving jobs to Mexico.”
Alford said American Axle had informed the UAW the plant, which produces heavy-duty pickup truck axles, would close by mid-July and production would move to Guanajuato, Mexico, by the end of July.
There are currently 734 active UAW-represented workers employed at the plant, Alford told the news agency, adding:.”All of those jobs are going to Mexico.”
American Axle spokeswoman Renee Rogers declined to comment on Alford’s statements.
“We have said before that current market conditions will lead to the idling or consolidation of significant portions of our Detroit manufacturing complex,” she told Reuters.
She added that new job and production cuts announced this week by the supplier’s biggest customer, General Motors, meant the company would have to “continue that process.”
GM accounts for around three-quarters of American Axle’s sales.
Magna is to temporarily furlough a truck chassis plant in Ontario, Canada, next week after GM scaled back production.
