Unifor seeks new models for Windsor FCA minivan plant

Unifor wants as many as two new models to be built alongside the minivans at Fiat Chrysler Automobiles' Windsor, Ontario, assembly plant, where one of three shifts was recently cut amid shrinking sales in the segment.

Unifor will also push FCA for clarity on its plans for the Brampton, Ontario, assembly plant, which builds the aging but profitable Dodge Charger and Dodge Challenger, as well as the Chrysler 300.

"We have a full plate in front of us with Fiat Chrysler," Unifor President Jerry Dias said.

Negotiations between FCA and the Canadian union, which represents about 9,000 workers covered under contracts with FCA, were set to kick into gear this week, pending the ratification of a tentative contract with Ford Motor Co.

The Ford deal, which was agreed to on Sept. 22, included a commitment from Ford to invest $1.95 billion Canadian dollars ($1.46 billion) in its Canadian facilities, with financial support from the federal government. Most of that was slated for Ford's Oakville, Ontario, plant, which will begin building electric vehicles in 2025, according to Dias.

Securing one or two new models for Windsor Assembly and regaining the plant's third shift, which employed about 1,500 people until it was cut in July, figure to be Unifor's top priorities in negotiations with FCA. The job cuts have been a point of contention between the union and FCA since they were announced in 2019.

Sales of Windsor Assembly's Chrysler Pacifica, also marketed as a Voyager minivan, fell 27 percent in the first half of the year in the U.S. while they plunged 52 percent in Canada. FCA is idling the plant for three weeks, citing "market demand."

Dias said he was "confident" Unifor and FCA would reach a deal on Windsor Assembly and the automakers' other plants.

"But will it be difficult? The answer is — no question — yes," he said.

FCA is similarly resolved, according to an emailed statement to Automotive News: "We are committed to reaching an agreement that will allow us to continue investing in our future and create opportunities for our employees, their families and the communities where we live and work."

Securing new production for Windsor or Brampton could prove to be complicated for Unifor as FCA prepares for its merger with the French automaker PSA Group, said Kristin Dziczek, vice president of industry, labor and economics at the Center for Automotive Research in Ann Arbor, Mich.

She said it remained unclear what the North American product lineup and production footprint will look like for Stellantis, the combined PSA-FCA company.

"That might not all get settled in the next week, in time for Unifor to ink a deal that secures some of that. FCA can't promise them PSA product," she said.

While Windsor might take center stage in discussions, the Brampton plant's future has long been the subject of speculation. While the Charger and Challenger are believed to be highly profitable vehicles for FCA, they also sit on aging platforms.

It remains unclear how the gas-powered Charger and Challenger will fit in with Stellantis' long-term EV strategy.

Unifor, however, has made securing EV and hybrid production a top priority and could view such vehicles as a potential solution in the coming years, as evidenced with its tentative deal with Ford.

"Electrification opportunities" for Brampton intrigued Flavio Volpe, the head of Canada's Automotive Parts Manufacturers' Association. He has advocated for more EV production in Canada as a way to ensure the long-term viability of automaking in the country.

"I think there's a lot of potential in Brampton," he said.