Ford may stand down 1800 plant workers this week

BroadyFord · 23-04-2012, 09:31 PM

Really bad news! :(

Ford poised to stand down 1800 plant workers as key supplier collapses

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/mor...-1226336357060

EXCLUSIVE: FORD'S Geelong and Broadmeadows plants could stand down almost 1800 workers as early as Thursday because of the collapse of a key parts supplier.

Around 100 workers are already locked out of the Campbellfield factory of supplier CMI after a disgruntled landlord changed the locks over an estimated $150,000 of unpaid rent.

The plant makes suspension arms for Ford’s Falcon and Territory range but the car manufacturer only has two days’ worth of parts because of its “just in time” delivery policy.

Ford confirmed this afternoon that it had enough parts until Thursday afternoon but it could not guarantee workers shifts beyond that date until new parts were found.

Australian Manufacturing Workers Union assistant secretary Leigh Diehm said the flow on effects from the shutdown of CMI would be major.

“They only supply to Ford and because they have a ‘just in time’ delivery policy to save on warehousing they don’t have much stock,” he said.

“I would think they only had two days’ stock and that included today.”

Ford could begin standing down workers as soon as Thursday, given that the factories would already be closed on Wednesday because of the ANZAC day public holiday.

Mr Diehm said the State Government needed to urgently step in to avoid a major jobs disaster.

He said there were almost 4000 workers that would be affected at Ford’s Geelong and Broadmeadows plants, but the company clarified this afternoon that only 1800 would be stood down on half pay.

“The Victorian State Government has been doing nothing. There are between 3000 and 4000 workers at the Broadmeadows and Geelong plants, where does that leave us in the next few weeks,” Mr Diehm said.

“This is a very sad situation.”

Workers will hold a meeting at CMI’s Campbellfield plant at 7am tomorrow to discuss their future.

The landlord refused to reopen CMI’s Campbellfield plant despite an emergency Fair Work Australia hearing on Saturday.

Ford spokeswoman Sinead McAlary the company had been in discussions with CMI about the supply of parts.

“We are okay until mid to late Thursday but we are waiting to see what happens at this stage,” she said.

“The plants could be stood down by the end of Thursday and that would go on until we get new parts.”