Barry Devolin Column

March 23, 2005

GM Jobs Safe for a Generation

General Motors recently announced a long-awaited $2.5 billion investment at its Canadian assembly plants that includes a major boost to research and development spending. This represents the most comprehensive automotive investment ever made in Canada, and includes up to $200 million from the federal government and $235 million from the province.

The initiative will upgrade assembly operations and implement new automotive research and training initiatives. It will also create up to 500 new jobs in Oshawa, Ingersoll and St. Catharines. This announcement is even more important in light of GM’s recent decision to not proceed with a new rear-wheel drive platform slated for production in Oshawa.

Many people may not realize it, but GM in Oshawa is the single largest employer for residents of Haliburton-Kawartha Lakes-Brock.  All told, GM’s Oshawa assembly plants directly employ more than 5,000 people and generate tens of thousands more jobs with suppliers and related industries and services.

For me, this announcement is even more exciting considering the creation of the “Automotive Centre of Excellence” at the University of Ontario Institute of Technology, a facility that will link auto suppliers, universities, researchers and students in the areas of automotive engineering, design and innovation.

Earlier this year, I was pleased to spend half a day at the GM design facility in Oshawa to see first-hand what is being designed and built in Canada and to meet with members of senior management to discuss the future of the company.

More recently, I was pleased to meet with Buzz Hargrove and other leaders from the Canadian Auto Workers. I came out of that meeting sharing the CAW’s belief that the Canadian auto industry can only survive and prosper if everyone works together – management, labour, outside suppliers, educational institutions and all levels of government.

The fact that CAW members have continually met demands for high quality and productivity explains why GM Canada won this investment while competing with other GM operations around the world.

I also hope that our commitment to automotive excellence will encourage Toyota to consider Ontario as a new home to a proposed $1-billion dollar plant that would generate up to 2 000 new jobs.

The bottom line is that a successful auto industry is of vital importance to the people and economy of Ontario. Investments of this magnitude provide the kind of long-term stability that makes everyone more comfortable whether they are making career plans, buying homes or expanding local businesses.