TORONTO — Unifor President Jerry Dias said he anticipates Canada’s auto assembly plants coming back online will do so initially as one-shift operations whenever it is determined that they can safely re-open.
“Even if they open up, it’s not going to be business as usual for quite a while,” Dias said. “They’ll ease into it based off of parts [availability] and based off the cleanliness of the facilities. They’ll likely rotate shifts and have groups at home. There’s going to have to be extended periods of time for cleaning.”
The COVID-19 pandemic has rattled the North American auto industry this month, virtually shutting down manufacturing in a matter of days and sending new-vehicle demand plummeting. All of Canada’s auto assembly plants have been temporarily shuttered as government and health officials urge people to stay home.
It remains unknown when automakers will restart their factories. Ford Motor Co., announced on Tuesday it was indefinitely delaying the…
