Todd Forbes, a lifelong resident of Oshawa, doesn’t want to leave his hometown.
His apartment is located in the south-central part of the Ontario city, which has been the industrial hub where thousands of General Motors employees have earned their living since the plant opened in 1918.
However, on January 30, when GM Canada plans to eliminate the midnight shift at its Oshawa facility, Forbes will find himself unemployed. He doubts he will secure another job in this city of about 185,000 people, where he was born and raised and where his four children and seven grandchildren live.
“It’s definitely gut wrenching … I’ve lived in this area my whole life,” he expressed.
At 48 years old, Forbes is thinking about relocating to Nova Scotia with his wife and their dog, Gizmo. He believes he might have better job opportunities there – even though he has a background in manufacturing, maintenance, waste management, retail, and sales.
For more than a year now, Forbes has been employed at TFT Global Inc., which provides auto parts for the Oshawa GM plant. This role marked his first full-time position after finishing cancer treatment and completing a college program in law and security.
Yet Forbes worries that his employment gap combined with Oshawa’s nine percent unemployment rate will hinder his chances.
“I’m looking at whether there’s a job possibility where I’m making roughly the same pay or slightly less,” he said while noting that prospects appear brighter in the Maritimes.
Canada’s unemployment rate hits highest rate since pandemic
Canada’s unemployment rate reached 7.1 percent in August – its highest since 2016 outside of the pandemic period. Much of this increase can be attributed directly to the U. S. trade war.
Forbes is among approximately 2,000 individuals expected to lose their jobs due to the upcoming shift layoff at GM’s Oshawa Assembly. Workers will be leaving behind a reduced facility now facing new challenges from U. S. tariffs while embarking on a tough job search amidst one of Canada’s highest urban unemployment rates.
These layoffs come as national unemployment reached its peak level excluding pandemic factors since 2016 last month; Ontario led this decline by losing around 26,000 jobs.
The Oshawa Assembly currently employs about 3,000 GM workers alongside an additional 2,000 supply-chain staff from eight different companies working inside the plant daily. This information comes from Jeff Gray, president of Unifor Local 222 which represents workers at both GM and some suppliers.
When GM eliminates the midnight shift, roughly 750 workers will be laid off; however an additional 1,500 individuals who are part of the supply chain – including Forbes – will also face job loss.
Forbes says it’s ‘gut-wrenching’ to think about moving away from Oshawa, Ont., where he was born and raised. But he says he doesn’t think he’ll be able to find a job in the city of 185,000 after he is laid off in January due to a looming GM shift cut. (Evan Mitsui/CBC)
Earlier this month workers at GM and its suppliers received a temporary four-month delay as planned layoffs were pushed back from November until January next year.
Nonetheless thousands of well-paying jobs remain uncertain according to Gray. Many employees belong to families that have worked tirelessly on assembly lines for generations often putting in six or seven days each week.
“It’s all we know honestly.… It would be devastating if we lost that way of life,” he stated.
GM initially planned to cut its third shift at the Oshawa Assembly this fall but extended that date to Jan. 30 earlier this month. (Michael Cole/CBC)
Workers at GM’s plant fear for their livelihoods according to Chris Waugh who serves as Unifor chairperson for the Oshawa facility.
“I’ve got members selling homes，selling vehicles，and preparing themselves for layoffs.”
As for GM，the company claims it “will continue taking proactive strategic measures aimedat adaptingto changing market conditionsand production requirements supporting sustainable operationsin Oshawa,” stated company spokesperson Ariane Pereira via email tothe .
“GMhas built vehiclesin Canada since1918, and we’re executingplansforbuildingherefor Canadiansforthenext100plusyears,”the email continued.
Isittimetobuildour owncar? p >With U. S. President Donald Trumpthreateningtounravel Canada’sautomotiveindustry, someargueitis timetofindlocal solutions. As The National的CBCNick Purdonexploreswhatitwouldtakeestablishaleading Canadian carcompany.Itclearlyillustratesdownwardtrends-thoughnotcompletelyoutoftheordinaryaccordingto Bernard.Despitejoblosseswithinvehiclemanufacturing, Bernardsaidlayoffsaren’tdramaticyet.“Thismightpartiallyresultfromcompaniesintheseindustrieswaitingto seewhereeventsultimatelyland.”Findingnewjobsisbecomingmorechallengingin Canada, Bernardnoted; hiringhasbeen sluggish, resultinginahighernationalunemploymentrate.
< li st en/ l i st en | G M added250 te mp ora ry jobs Fort Wayne In d. plantbefore O sh awashiftcu t:
< ol id = “ C olumns5 b”-11mc-t5-nf0v-A4tsp72rht-DH wp C TC Tkm Ol-O8K R “` Here's Christian D’Avinooneofourreportersfrom Oshawabureau. Ityouwantreadoverourwebsiteatcbc. ca/toronto. So far, Todd lives within10-minutedriveofallhischildrenandgrandkids; two yearsago, hisswitchfromcaravanintovanaccommodatedmorefamilyrecently packedasmanygrandkidsthathecouldwithhimforthe Peterborough Zoo. Now he'sthinkingaboutloadingupeverythingthat sameminy vehicletakingthe Maritimes. Ifhemoveshewantsvisithisfamilyasmuchashecan. "I'm notjustgiving up mycommunity,"Forbesremarked."It’saboutbeingclosewithmy family.” Do youhaveanews story outof Oshawatocover? Reachoutandreports ourteamthroughoshawanews@cbc. ca.
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