By Kevin Mooney — JD Norman Industries, of Addison, Ill., planned to purchase a General Motors parts supplier so it could continue producing fenders, hoods and other metal parts for the company. Norman also offered to bring in new orders from other automakers. Motors Liquidation Co., which was created to sell surplus GM property during the automaker’s bankruptcy, owns the facility. Without a buyer, the plant will be forced to close in October 2011. And so it will thanks to the UAW’s recalcitrant local branch.
Norman agreed to save the supplier from closure under the condition that UAW workers bring their pay closer to the industry average. But instead of accepting this arrangement the United Auto Workers Local voted against this compromise on Monday all but ensuring the loss of 650 jobs. Vincent Vernuccio, a labor policy counsel with the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) has the story.