Doug Ford vows to support Stellantis, workers in wake of news 1,800 jobs will be cut

Ontario Premier Doug Ford vows to support Windsor autoworkers — and Stellantis — following news last last week that the company plans to cut a shift next year, a move that will cost hundreds of jobs.

"I just want to make sure that people on the lines know that I'll stand shoulder to shoulder with them and support them every way I can," Ford said Monday. "We're putting up a tremendous amount of money, so are the feds. Now, we have to talk to Stellantis."

Ford, who wants to see Stellantis twin its operations in Windsor, said there are plans for an investment "in the hundreds of millions" between the province and Ottawa. Ford indicated he intends to put pressure on the automaker.

"We need to get not one shift, not two shifts, we need three shifts going, plus we need a battery plant here," he said.

Ford was in Tecumseh to announce a $9.8-million contribution to the Windsor mega-hospital project.

News one of Windsor's biggest employers is eliminating a shift — translating to 1,800 job losses — has been reverberating across the region since the announcement was made on Friday.

Citing "significant headwinds such as the persisting semiconductor shortage and the extended effects of the COVID-19 pandemic," the company formerly known as Fiat Chrysler said it would transition the Windsor Assembly Plant from two shifts to one in the spring.