The Rouge plant produces the F-150 and F-150 Lightning
The UAW has been on strike for more than a month, and Ford Executive Chairman Bill Ford has called for an end to the strike because the union is harming “tens of thousands of Americans” and putting the American auto industry at risk.
Bill Ford said that “a couple of decades ago, some executives wanted to close the Rouge” because “they thought it was just a rusting relic of another era.” But he refused and turned the plant, which makes the F-150 and F-150 Lightning, into “a crown jewel of a company that still believes building in America matters.”
Plants like Rouge have “created countless well-paying industrial jobs and a thriving middle class,” the executive said. He added that “creating something in America is important now more than ever, especially in these uncertain times.”
Bill Ford believes the UAW is putting all of this in jeopardy, as he said, “I’ve seen countries lose their auto industry, and then pretty much every industry after that.” He noted that the company is now at a crossroads due to the strike, and “choosing the right path is not only about the future of Ford and our ability to compete” but also “the future of the American auto industry.”
The confrontation between Ford and the strikers has reached a new level
Bill Ford added: “This should not be Ford versus the UAW. It should be Ford and the UAW versus Toyota Honda and Tesla and all the Chinese companies that want to enter our domestic market. Toyota, Honda, Tesla, and others like this strike because they know that the longer it goes on, the better for them. They will win and we will all lose.” Bill Ford said that if they lose, America will lose as “many jobs will be lost” and factories will be closed. The executive went on to say that the company is “the strongest partner the UAW has ever known” and that they will “succeed or fail together.”
He added that the strike “will have a serious impact on the American economy and devastate local communities. We can stop this now by coming together to end this bitter round of negotiations.”
In response, UAW President Sean Fein said, “Bill Ford knows exactly how to break this strike. Instead of threatening to shut down the Rouge, he should call Ford CEO Jim Farley and tell him to stop playing games and make a deal or we’ll shut down the Rouge for him.”
That means the union is considering shutting down the Rouge and ending production of America’s best-selling car. This would be a huge escalation that would cause significant damage.
He added that “if Ford wants to be an all-American car company, they can pay all-American wages and benefits. Workers at Tesla, Toyota, Honda, and other companies are not the enemy, but members of the UAW of the future.”
