The coronavirus outbreak in Michigan, which has emerged as the worst U.S. hotspot, is surging in a critical factory for Stellantis NV’s Ram pickup truck with an estimated 10 percent of production employees out for COVID-related reasons.
About 630 production workers were absent on Tuesday because they’d either tested positive for COVID-19 or were in quarantine, according to three people familiar with the matter, who declined to be identified. That’s up by roughly 200 workers from a week ago, one of the people said, and represents roughly a tenth of production workers at SHAP, as the plant in Sterling Heights, Mich., is known.
The uptick in COVID cases and subsequent quarantine requirements is one of several factors slowing production for one of Stellantis’ most profitable vehicles. The Ram plant fell short of its daily build number by between 200 and 300 vehicles this week, according to one of the people.
