Bombardier has made it official saying they will lay off 550 employees starting November 4th.
They say they’ve been in talks with the Federal, Provincial and City of Toronto since the fall of 2018 to help mitigate the terminations.
Company officials say the decision to shed over half of their workforce is due to the cyclical nature of their business and ramping down two of their major projects the Metrolinx BiLevel and TTC LRV.
The company also points to the local content requirement in the United States, which is now at 65% and will be at 70% this fall due to the Buy America Act.
COO of Bombardier, Americas, David Van der Wee tells us he’s still hopeful they’ll be able to find future work for the local plant.
He says Thunder Bay could see more work once new contracts are finalized including 60 streetcars for the TTC which has been an ongoing discussion with the TTC and Bombardier. Bombardier knows there is a need in the Toronto area for transit. There’s also talk of the ‘rocket’ which is an iconic model for Toronto.
Thunder Bay’s Mayor says the layoffs will have a major impact on the city’s economy.
Bill Mauro calls on the province and the federal government to work with cities who need public transit.
“So financially they usually have help. We need the province and the federal government to say ‘when you go to buy we’re going to help you financially with that procurement.’ We need the government to commit to and maintain a Canadian content policy.”
The Mayor stresses without a stronger Canadian content policy in place we may not get the contract from cities looking for public transit.
Meanwhile, you can add Thunder Bay’s MP to the growing list of people who are disappointed to hear about layoffs at our local Bombardier plant.
Patty Hajdu tells our newsroom that she has been in constant contact with the company and the union.
The Federal Minister of Labour calls out Premier Doug Ford saying a few months ago he promised the union president there would be another contract coming, but it hasn’t materialized.
Last month, Hajdu suggested the province could receive federal funds for their future public transit projects but first had to provide them with detailed plans.
Hajdu says Ford has left money on the table.
Speaking at a Premiers meeting in Saskatchewan, Doug Ford places the responsibility at the federal government’s feet.
“We put forward one of the largest transit plans in North America. $28.5 billion dollars and we need the federal government to sign it, they’ve been sitting on their hands and we haven’t heard hide nor hair.”
Ontario’s Minister of Transportation, Caroline Mulroney has expressed her disappointment that the company has taken this step. Mulroney urges the company to work with the provincial government to come to an agreement that would see jobs remain at the local plant.
The PC government is calling on Bombardier to continue the commercial negotiations with Metrolinx while working towards a viable solution to protect jobs in Thunder Bay.
NDP MPP Judith Monteith-Farrell is urging the province to “get in gear” and take action, rather than just letting the jobs go.
She adds, “This Bombardier plant is the cornerstone of Thunder Bay’s economy. The news that hundreds of workers will lose their jobs is causing anxiety across the region.”
Liberal MPP Michael Gravelle says as Bombardier’s the largest private-sector employer in Thunder Bay, this is extremely disappointing and must be countered with strong action to ensure that new contracts return the plant to full production levels.
He goes on to say the province has a huge role to play in making this happen, “with a commitment to ‘make unprecedented investments in public transit in Ontario’, the Ford government can ensure that this happens by working directly with Metrolinx and the TTC, extending the contracts presently in place, and by increasing the Canadian content requirements for Ontario financed transit projects.”
