COVID-19: UAW, GM, Ford, FCA to Improve Protection for Manufacturing and Warehouse Workers

Posted on 16 March 2020 by Ken Zino

The United Auto Workers (UAW), General Motors Co., Ford Motor Company and Fiat Chrysler  (FCA) announced late yesterday that they are forming a COVID-19/Coronavirus Task Force to implement enhanced protections for manufacturing and warehouse employees at all three companies. Insiders say the UAW wanted an immediate shutdown but the CEOs wouldn’t have it.  

UAW President Rory Gamble, GM Chairman and CEO Mary Barra, Ford Executive Chairman Bill Ford and President and CEO Jim Hackett, and FCA CEO Michael Manley will lead the task force.

They will be supported by:

  • Terry Dittes, vice president, UAW-GM Department
  • Gerald Kariem, vice president, UAW-Ford Department
  • Cindy Estrada, vice president, UAW-FCA Department
  • The medical staffs, and the manufacturing and labor leadership teams at all three companies

“Workplace health and safety is a priority for us every day, all three companies have been taking steps to keep the COVID-19/coronavirus out of their facilities and during this national emergency, we will do even more working together,” said Gamble, who convened the leaders of all three companies.

In a joint statement, GM, Ford and FCA said, “This is a fluid and unprecedented situation, and the task force will move quickly to build on the wide-ranging preventive measures we have put in place. We are all coming together to help keep our workforces safe and healthy.”

All three companies and the UAW are working to coordinate action to prevent the spread of the COVID-19/coronavirus, including enhanced visitor screening, increased cleaning and sanitizing of common areas and touch points, and implementing safety protocols for people with potential exposure, as well as those who exhibit flu-like symptoms.

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About Ken Zino

Ken Zino, editor and publisher of AutoInformed, is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn. He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe. Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped during a downshift and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap. AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks. Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.
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One Response to COVID-19: UAW, GM, Ford, FCA to Improve Protection for Manufacturing and Warehouse Workers

  1. Pingback: Unions, FCA Sign Agreement on Workplace Health and Safety | AutoInformed

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