Saving the Ford Twin Cities Plant
Today we officially kicked off the Green Machines Road Trip at the Ford Twin Cities plant here in St. Paul. UAW Local 879 is hosting a Labor and Sustainability Conference focused on the climate crisis and worker-friendly strategies for addressing it. The local represents retirees and about 1800 workers at the Ford plant, half of whom have just taken buy-outs from Ford, and the rest of whom will be laid off or transferred when the plant shuts down next year.
Right now workers here build the Ford Ranger, a small pick-up truck that hasn’t been re-designed in over a decade (yes, a decade!)--but they won’t be for long. They had been expecting an announcement about the shut down for some time, considering that the vehicle and the plant had not received any investments for so long. They finally received it on April 13 last year.
Though workers were disappointed and angry after hearing the announcement, they immediately took positive action and began an unprecedented campaign to save the plant. They wrote up a detailed proposal to convert the plant to build new, green, advanced, fuel-efficient vehicles. Their proposal, Green Plant, Green Corporation, Green State - Just Add Green Products, highlights the fact that the plant produces all of its own energy and then some through a hydro-electric plant that was built by Ford back in 1924. The proposal got lots of media attention and was even reviewed by Bill Ford back when he was still CEO. And though Ford said they would consider it, they haven’t made any indication that they might take action.
The local isn’t stopping at Ford though. They’re reaching out to any and all manufacturers of green technologies to purchase and manufacture products in their green plant. And while they are concerned about their work force, their biggest concern is that the state of Minnesota begins producing advanced technologies that can help curb global warming, says Lynn Hinkle, Safety Officer for Local 879 and one of the leaders of the local’s effort. Most notably, Lynn likes to highlight the opportunity to produce wind turbines at the plant because of booming interest in harnessing wind energy in Minnesota and surrounding states.
The story of this plant exemplifies the need for stronger policies to encourage investment in energy-saving technologies. Wouldn’t it be easier, for example, if there were incentives for the production of these technologies, to help them get a foothold in the marketplace while also helping to create new jobs?
We chatted with many brothers and sisters from Local 879 and others at the conference about the idea of green manufacturing incentives, and found a lot of support. We thank them for helping to kick-off our Road Trip on such an energetic and hopeful note, despite the tough road they still have ahead. We also thank them for being the first to sign our pledge and send our message about saving oil and saving jobs to Congress. We’ve learned today that the labor and environmental community here in the Twin Cities are leaving an incredible legacy . They are avid supporters of new policy solutions, and are taking action to address climate change in innovative ways that could provide quality employment for the area’s residents. Kudos to them; they exemplify the link between labor and the environment!
Read more about the conference at Work Day Minnesota, or watch video clips from the key note address by Jack Rasmus.
This is a great example of why we need to create positive incentives for companies to produce green and efficient technologies. If we keep subsidizing inefficiency that's what we'll get! Are there any other state or federal financial incentives to help Local 879 make it's pitch to a prospective company?
Posted by: BlueGreen | January 21, 2007 at 09:11 AM