GM pledges to retrain employees impacted by Oshawa plant closure

Dec 15 2018, 12:51 am

General Motors of Canada is going to provide financial support for retraining and assistance to help GM employees affected by the closure of the Oshawa Assembly plant.

In a statement released Friday, the truck and automaker said it has identified 2,400 jobs that will become open in the Durham region in 2019 and 2020.

“My priority is to have a transition plan for every Oshawa Assembly employee,” said GM Canada president and managing director, Travis Hester.

“We will work with our community colleges, universities, the government and all interested local employers, to make this happen and we are committing millions of dollars from GM Canada to support this effort.”

GM says it’s been contacted by a variety of employers with job opportunities for the “highly skilled employees” at Oshawa Assembly.

Job fairs and targeted training programs are currently being prepared by a coalition of local partners to help auto workers transition into their next careers, said GM.

Additionally, GM said it has identified 300 job openings for auto technicians at GM dealerships in Ontario and another 100 jobs at other GM facilities throughout the province.

Durham College will also launch a “confidential internet portal” in 2019 that will help auto workers find job openings and plan their retraining at one of the schools in the area.

“I especially want to thank Durham College President Don Lovisa and the many other educational institutions in the community who have come together to help our employees get a head start at new careers,” said Hester.

Workers were shocked last month when GM announced the Oshawa plant was one of five North American plants closing.

Meanwhile, Unifor, the union representing the auto workers, has launched a website saying that closure is not an option and it will “not accept any plans to close GM Oshawa.”

The General Motors Oshawa Assembly Plant has been building vehicles since November 7, 1953, according to GM’s website.

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