Parts shortage forces months-long layoffs for thousands at Kansas City Ford, GM plants
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to reflect that Clarence Brown, president of the UAW Local 31, is unsure how long the General Motors plant in Kansas City, Kansas, will remain closed.
A new car hasn’t rolled off the line of General Motors’ sprawling Kansas City, Kansas, factory in more than two months.
The factory, which makes the Chevrolet Malibu sedan and the Cadillac XT4 crossover SUV, has been crippled by a global shortage of semiconductors that has hit the nation’s automakers particularly hard.
Computer chips, which power many of the technological features of today’s newer cars, have been in short supply throughout the pandemic, when sales of personal computers skyrocketed as millions of people transitioned to learning and working at home.
The chip shortage has affected both of Kansas City’s auto plants: Ford closed its Transit van line this week at the Claycomo Assembly Plant in its latest disruption. But the issue has proven more costly for workers of General Motors, who have been on temporary layoff since Feb. 8.
“We are devastated,” said Clarence Brown, president of the UAW Local 31, which represents workers at GM’s assembly plant in the Fairfax district in KCK. “It’s a touchy situation for members.”
UAW members receive about 75% of their compensation while on temporary layoff. But Brown said that’s not as good as it sounds. Some of that pay comes from the Kansas unemployment system, which has struggled throughout the pandemic to get benefits to workers in a timely manner.
“Some of our members haven’t been paid yet,” he said.
Automakers have focused on supplying parts to their most popular models. GM, for example, hasn’t reduced shifts at any plants that make in-demand trucks or full-size SUVs, officials said.
Ford’s van assembly line in Claycomo is closed this week. Its uber-popular F-150 pickup line is operating, though the company did shut down all three shifts on the pickup line last week.
“We caution our members to be prepared for additional down weeks,” UAW Local 249 wrote on Facebook last week. “These recent schedule changes have been coming with little to no advance notice.”
Demand for KC-made Ford F-150 surging, though hundreds of pickups are stockpiled here
The Claycomo plant employs 7,250 workers and produces more vehicles than any other Ford factory on the continent. To keep pace with demand — and catch up from the chip shortage — the company recently announced employees would be working during traditional summer shutdown weeks, rather than taking vacation.
“During this period of disruption, we thank our employees for their flexibility, tenacity and commitment to deliver high-quality vehicles that continue to be in high demand among our customers and dealers,” Ford said in a statement. “We are working closely with suppliers to address potential production constraints tied to the global semiconductor shortage and working to prioritize key vehicle lines for production, making the most of our semiconductor allocation.”
The semiconductor shortage is poised to cost automakers as much as $60 billion this year. The problem began as chip factories shut down last spring because of the pandemic. And it only got worse as demand for personal computers soared to a 10-year high.
Chip makers aren’t expected to catch up with auto demand until at least July, the Associated Press reported.
As the shortage hits consumers, some are calling for a renewed investment in American manufacturing. The share of global semiconductor manufacturing capacity in the U.S. has eroded from 37% in 1990 to 12% today, according to the Semiconductor Industry Association.
“Why cant we make them here?” Brown said. “I’m baffled that General Motors has allowed someone who makes parts for them to shut them down in this way.”
GM officials say the Kansas City plant will remain closed through at least May 10. Brown said he doesn’t know when the plant might reopen.
It’s the latest shutdown for workers, who walked out of the factory in 2019 during contract negotiations and then saw their plant shut down for the several months at the onset of the pandemic.
“Over my 40 years of experience at General Motors, they’ve taught me some things. One of the things they taught me is there should always be a Plan B,” Brown said. “Where is it?”
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