The CAW demanded Friday that Canadian governments immediately pledge up to $2.5 billion in loan guarantees for Chrysler Canada or see their Windsor jobs transferred to the United States.
The federal and provincial governments need to pledge the money “today” to help avert the company’s imminent bankruptcy, said Rick Laporte, president of CAW Local 444.
“We need them to come to the table…. We need them to commit today or we’ll be out of luck,” Laporte told about 1,500 CAW members and other union members who gathered outside Chrysler’s Windsor Assembly Plant for a 12-minute demonstration during lunch Friday.
Laporte said he and CAW president Ken Lewenza met with top Canadian and American Chrysler executives before the demonstration at what’s left of the company’s Canadian headquarters on Riverside Drive.
The executives told the the CAW they need “proportional” loan support from Ottawa and Queen’s Park for their Canadian operations, as compared to their U.S. plants, or the assembly jobs on this side of the border will be moved to the U.S.
“They said the U.S. (government) is trying to dictate that the minivan jobs be moved to the States,” Laporte said of their meeting with Chrysler officials, which included the executive vice-presidents of manufacturing and labour relations.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper has said repeatedly this week — mostly through spokespeople — that his government will provide the teetering Detroit-based automakers General Motors and Chrysler with enough support to help keep their Canadian operations afloat during the current financial crisis.
But there will be “strings attached” to the aid, Harper officials emphasized.
Laporte said the CAW needs Canadian politicians to pledge support without strings and even if U.S. support fails to materialize.
“The Canadian government needs to come forward now, no matter what the U.S. does,” he said after the demonstration, which closed Drouillard Road in front of Windsor Assembly Plant Gate No. 2.
In Toronto, CAW leaders warned that “very dangerous economic consequences” would ensue if one or more of the companies was allowed to collapse. Ford is considered safe for the forseeable year ahead, but General Motors and Chrysler’s liquidity is now being measured in weeks.
“This is not the time for politicians to play games, point fingers, or invent scapegoats,” said Lewenza. “Obviously, Canada cannot save these global companies on our own. But we can help to break the U.S. logjam by acknowledging the gravity of the situation, and indicating our willingness to do a fair share of the heavy lifting.”
Lewenza said frozen retail credit, which has cut sales nearly in half for GM and Chrysler and virtually eliminate leasing for the entire automotive industry, has been deeply damaging to the automakers.
“We cannot allow this crisis in private finance to permanently destroy a crucial pillar of our long-run prosperity,” Lewenza said, urging the federal government and the Bank of Canada to act immediately to support new car lending in Canada.
Laporte said Chrysler executives told the union they were “only $2.5 billion away from Chapter 11” bankruptcy filing in the United States. That would be two weeks away, since the company has also admitted it is paying out about $1 billion per week to its suppliers and has very little money coming in,.
An immediate loan guarantee of $7 billion to Detroit would be enough to tide GM and Chrysler over the Christmas break and to the bigger bailout promised by the new government of president elect Barack Obama, Laporte said the union was told.
“Seven billion — that will bridge them to Obama,” Laporte said, quoting the executives. “They’re just trying to get to Obama.”
