CHENNAI: It’s not just the employees of Ford’s Maraimalai Nagar plant who are worried about the announcement of its closure in 2022. Employees working in Ford Suppliers Park, located on the campus of Ford India here, are equally concerned.
Ashok, an employee of JBM Auto Limited, the largest supplier of auto components to Ford, said future is uncertain for employees working for the Ford project at JBM. “Over 60 per cent of the auto components here are supplied to Ford; the announcement caught the employees off guard,” he said.
“I don’t know whether I will have this job or be transferred to other areas where JBM has business,” he added. The company has 54 units and the one in Chennai was for developing spare parts for Ford. Though JBM is yet to take a decision following Ford announcement to shut the plant, it has stopped production of Ford spare parts.
“In the last two weeks, we were making body parts. Now, it has been stopped,” he said. The Ford Suppliers park also houses Wheels India, Adient, one of the leaders in automotive seating, among others.
JBM is now using the plant to make spare parts for Isuzu and for European auto major Groupe PSA, which is going to kick-start its journey in Chennai. It recently raised a new team to make components for Groupe PSA, said an employee, recently transferred to the city from Delhi.
Bigwigs apart, small parts-making units too are troubled by the announcement. C Balachander, who has a Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprise (MSME) unit, supplies spares to JBM for Ford. “These are material-handling equipment. I used to make around `10 lakh selling these equipment to JBM, which it used for Ford and other auto majors. The order from Ford has been closed since January. That means a loss of `5 lakh a month,” he said. Meanwhile, the State has yet to make an official statement on Ford’s planning to shut down operations next year.
Meanwhile, tension was palpable on the faces of employees at Ford’s plant as they went about their work on Monday. And rightly so, for their future depended on the outcome of the discussion held between the employee’s union and the Ford management.
“The discussion started around 10.30 am and went on for nearly three hours,” said Senthil Kumar, General Secretary of Chennai Ford Employees Union. “We have put forth our demands, urging Ford to ensure job security of its employees,” he said. The union has asked Ford to ensure that all its employees are transferred to any company it plans to sell its assets to.
Result of union-ford discussion
It’s learnt that Ford representatives, headed by the human resources director of Ford India, will announce a decision after a meeting with the company’s management. Based on this decision, the union would announce its next course of action, its leaders said