OSHAWA, Ontario – BUSINESS — In meetings in Detroit, GM told the federal and Ontario governments that it intends to continue to be a major manufacturer in Canada with its Ingersoll and St Catharines plants and continue to expand next-generation automotive engineering, software and testing work in Oshawa, Markham, Kapuskasing and soon in the Toronto Portlands.

GM reaffirmed that it does not have a viable business case for production at Oshawa Assembly past the end of this year because of rapid changes in the North American car market, the cancellation of Oshawa products and persistent low utilization at the plant.

General Motors Highlights Canadian Plans

What is GM Canada Doing to Support Affected Workers at Oshawa Assembly?

• We take care of our people and we want to have a transition plan for every impacted employee.
• GM Canada has committed millions of dollars to help our Oshawa Assembly employees transition and retrain – so our employees and their families know that if they choose not to retire on their GM pension (more than half of our hourly workers at Oshawa Assembly will be eligible for their GM pension when production ends at the end of 2019), there will be an opportunity for them to transition to one of 5,000 good available new jobs in Durham Region and GTA and GM will help fund the transition training for them.
• We have been contacted by numerous Durham Region and GTA employers like Mitsubishi, OPG, its contractor Aecon, our dealers and others saying they want to hire our employees when they finish in Oshawa Assembly.
• There is a consortium of community colleges and Universities in Durham ready to provide training with a new one-stop online portal and call line and more to come this year – like job fairs.

January 8, 2019 Letter to Unifor

• At a meeting with Unifor in Detroit on January 8, 2019, GM informed the union that GM had completed an analysis of Unifor’s proposals but unfortunately, they all would involve substantial incremental costs and a further deterioration of GM’s competitive position. They would not combat the declining economic and market factors that must be addressed.
• We proposed to begin discussion of how to support retirement-eligible employees, who make up half of the hourly Oshawa Assembly workforce.  Supports include full pension, a significant lump sum retirement incentive payment and a $20K car voucher.
• For other Oshawa Hourly Workers the Collective Agreement provides that members, depending on their status and length of service, may be eligible for access to Employee Assistance Program coverage, a lump sum payment to assist in their transition to new employment, health care coverage continuation, supplemental layoff benefits and other general benefits.
• Beyond the provisions in the Collective Bargaining Agreement, GM has committed millions of dollars to help support training for job opportunities for Oshawa Assembly workers.

GM is Committed to Canada and we are Transforming for the Future

• GM is committed to Canada and we are not going anywhere.
• GM will continue to be one of the largest employers in the city of Oshawa and Durham Region with the Canadian Headquarters, Canadian Technical Centre – Oshawa campus and indirect employment at the OnStar Call Centre.
• Our dedicated remaining workforce is still well over 5,000 Canadians.
• We continue to produce the Chevrolet Equinox at CAMI Assembly in Ingersoll, Ontario and engines and transmissions at our St. Catharines Propulsion Plant in St. Catharines, Ontario. There are no plans for operating changes at those operations at this time.
• GM is investing in Canada for the future at our Canadian Technical Center in Markham and Oshawa, the Mobility Center in Toronto and our Cold Weather testing site in Kapuskasing.
• We have four Parts Distribution Centers located across the country in Vancouver, Edmonton, Woodstock and Montreal.
• In 2018, we announced the new GM Canada STEM Fund –a $1.8 million commitment towards STEM education programs for students, to help inspire the next generation of technological innovators.
• The Canadian Headquarters will continue to operate at 1908 Colonel Sam Drive in Oshawa.

Facts Regarding Mexico Production

• GM sources more than 90 per cent of the vehicles it sells in Canada from either Canada or the United States
• GM has not opened a new plant in Mexico in over 10 years, however European, Korean and Japanese manufacturers have opened plants in Mexico over the past decade.

Facts Regarding Government Restructuring Loans in 2009

• GM repaid all its loans and has fulfilled or surpassed all the terms of its restructuring agreements with the Federal and Ontario governments.
• The governments made equity investments in GM and have subsequently sold these holdings.
• The government support enabled GM to continue its Canadian operations after 2009 and helped manage the Canadian economy through the 2009 financial crisis.
• Since 2009, GM has invested more than C$3.5 billion in our operations in Canada.

Facts on GM Canada Pensions 

• Through our GM Canada pensions, we support approximately 31,000 hourly retirees and 7,000 salary retirees in Canada.
• GM Canada pensions are strong and funded through our ongoing Canadian sales operations. In 2009, we strengthened our pension funding with a C$4 billion payment and we continue to meet all Ontario requirements for solvency funding.
• At last valuation, the GM hourly pension plan was more than 100% funded on a going concern basis.

Why is General Motors Transforming?

• The changes are necessary to accelerate our company’s transformation. They build on the comprehensive business strategy shared in 2015 and support the ongoing work to make General Motors more agile, resilient and profitable while giving us the flexibility to invest in the future and position the company for long-term success.
• We are taking these actions now – while our company and the economy are strong – to stay in front of the dramatic changes facing our industry and to capitalize on growth opportunities.

Aligning our Product Portfolio and Manufacturing Capacity with Shifting Customer Preferences

• North American consumer preferences are sharply changing with customers moving away from traditional sedans to crossovers and SUVs. In response, GM is ending production of six car models – Chevrolet Cruze, Volt and Impala, Buick LaCrosse, and Cadillac CT6 and XTS.
• This impacted eight plants around the world, including Oshawa Assembly, that all were operating well-below capacity and will not be allocated future product. Oshawa Assembly currently builds the Chevrolet Impala, Cadillac XTS and the previous-generation Silverado and Sierra pickups in a shuttle arrangement with Fort Wayne Assembly in Indiana.
• The U.S. assembly plants affected were Lordstown, Ohio and Detroit Hamtramck.
• We believe there is an important role for passenger cars to play globally and in North America, although it’s a smaller opportunity than in the past. In North America, for example, Chevrolet will continue to offer the Spark, Malibu, Camaro and Corvette.