Lear To Close Seat Plant For Charger, Challenger and 300:

Automotive seating manufacturer Lear Corp. has told the Unifor (the Canadian automotive trade labor union), that it plans on closing the doors of it’s seating plant in Ajax, Ontario. Workers have been on strike since the weekend at the plant. The plant currently makes seats for the Dodge Charger, Dodge Challenger and Chrysler 300, which are assembled at the FCA Brampton Assembly Plant just outside of Toronto.

“Due to the resounding rejection of the tentative agreement by the membership on May 1, 2018, and other recent developments from our customer regarding the future work, the company is announcing a closure of the Lear Ajax plant,” the company said in a memo to Unifor leaders.

There are currently about 320 Unifor membership workers, that work at the plant in Ajax, Ontario.

Failure of negotiations to secure a new collective agreement on pay and conditions, halted production at the Brampton Assembly Plant earlier this week.

According to a memo to Unifor leadership, the plant will be closed “as soon as practical”. However, not before the current vehicles made in Brampton are replaced. The Dodge Charger and Challenger are to be expected to replaced with the next generation of those cars coming in the 2020 calendar year.

Lear Corp. has announced that it has withdrawn the tentative offer that was overwhelmingly rejected by the workers on Monday.