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UAW strike enters day 4, layoffs could hit auto supplier plants

Posted at 12:24 PM, Sep 19, 2019
and last updated 2019-09-19 17:26:41-04

(WXYZ) — As the UAW strike extends into a fourth day, the auto suppliers and transport companies around metro Detroit are keeping a close eye on the situation.

Nexteer, a tier 1 supplier to GM, tells 7 Action News they are looking at temporary layoffs of their own if the strike continues.

“Without an imminent resolution, Nexteer faces the difficult conclusion to temporarily reduce our workforce in the coming days due to the disruption in GM production,” said Dennis Hoeg, Vice President and North America Division President of Nexteer Automotive.

Nexteer houses its world headquarters in Auburn Hills, with production lines throughout the world — that includes a production facility in Saginaw, Michigan.

It’s not the only domino effect being caused by the nearly 50,000 union workers striking nationwide — on Wednesday, General Motors announced more than 1,000 employees in Oshawa, Ontario would be temporarily laid off as a result of the ongoing strike in the U.S.

Employees outside the Detroit-Hamtramck Assembly plant in Detroit tell 7 Action News that they knew pressure would be placed on them, but that their resolve has not changed.

“Whatever it’s going to be,” said John Blaies, a 30+ year employee at Detroit-Hamtramck said. “Whatever the distance, we’ll go the distance.”