The head of the union representing Chrysler's Windsor workers said he's not too concerned about the automaker opening another Detroit plant.
In fact, Dave Cassidy, president of Unifor Local 444, said whenever there's a chance for FCA to grow and provide work, he's all for it. Though he has admitted that the news of Chrysler opening the idled Mack Avenue Engine II plant took him and the union by surprise.
"It was shocking to us at first," said Cassidy. "But the facts of the matter are that when we have overcapacity, and we need to build other facilities, that's a good thing."
On the heels of General Motors announcing that they will idle their plants in Oshawa and in Detroit's Poletown area, the idea of Chrysler expanding is welcome news, even when GM and Ford are announcing their plans to downsize and reorganize to build larger cars and SUVs, which make up much of the demand for auto customers.
Speaking to reporters on Friday at an event at Chrysler's Windsor Assembly Plant, Cassidy said Unifor officials are hoping to meet with FCA CEO Michael Manley and the new head of their North American operations, Mark Stewart, to discuss the role of Chrysler's Canadian workforce. Cassidy said the commitment of Canadian employees seems to be what is driving Chrysler's expansion.
"We have that set up in the new year," said Cassidy. "We're pushing the product in Brampton, we're pushing for the product in Windsor. I mean, they know what Canada can do. So it's a good thing that FCA is growing. It's not like the other companies, so this is a good news story."
Cassidy said the Detroit expansion will continue to support auto parts suppliers across the region since Windsor workers already supply parts for Chrysler's Jefferson North plant in Detroit.
The Mack Avenue Engine II plant was idled by Chrysler in 2012. FCA will retool and retrofit the plant to build the Jeep Grand Cherokee, beginning in 2020 for the model year of 2021.