Fiat Chrysler Fired A Warning Shot To Its Workers Over Coronavirus Work Stoppages

[richardya]

https://jalopnik.com/fiat-chrysler-fired-a-warning-shot-to-its-workers-over-1844252553


Most Fiat Chrysler workers have been back in factories for over a month now after being temporarily laid off because of the coronavirus pandemic. And while production has restarted it’s also been temporarily stopped at two separate plants by workers over coronavirus, and FCA is fed up.

The first stoppage was on June 25 at Jefferson North in Detroit, where a worker who later tested negative was sent home and workers there stopped in solidarity.

The second was two days after that at Stirling Heights Assembly Plant, also in Michigan, where employees stopped after one of them was sent to get a virus test.
The day after that, Fiat Chrysler apparently it had decided it had enough. The company’s head of manufacturing sent a letter to employees on June 28 threatening them discipline if there were any more “unauthorized” stoppages. The executive also said that pay could be docked.

From Bloomberg:

“Unauthorized work stoppages in our facilities create both disruption, and, potentially, safety concerns, and therefore cannot be tolerated,” Mike Resha, Fiat Chrysler’s head of North American manufacturing, wrote in a June 28 letter. Employees found to have instigated unapproved shutdowns will face disciplinary action, and stoppages “will result in zero pay,” he wrote.
[...]
A representative for Fiat Chrysler declined to comment on the letter. The company agreed to tighten health screening procedures for workers entering plants and dispatch cleaners to work areas within 15 minutes of being notified, Resha wrote. He also warned any employee who is untruthful in health-screening questionnaires that staff are required to fill out before entering facilities will be fired.

The UAW has encouraged automakers to uh maybe listen to the concerns of its employees in dealing with the pandemic, though this approach is more management telling workers to listen to them, or be disciplined.

Meanwhile, three Sterling Heights workers have died of COVID-19 over the course of the pandemic, one in March and two in April, in addition to a fourth who worked at an FCA plant in Kokomo, Indiana. FCA workers know the stakes as well as anyone.
I emailed FCA to see if it had further comment.

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[Rudolph Hart]

Corporate imperatives are clearly more important than the health of their workers. Pretty disgusting really.

 

[four low]

This Pandemic will lead to more automation in all areas of production ; will the money saved go to a Basic Minimum Income for displaced workers ? Should it ?

 

[nerubi]

There is no evidence the workers caught the virus at work, more likely in their non-work hours. Here there was a big infection in March because a large crowd went to a 15 year old girls quinceanera party in violation of health directives and many became infected. Because most worked at a meat packing plant they blamed it on the employer instead of their own irresponsibility.
The UAW and the automakers agreed to procedures to reopen so the workers need to follow them and go to work. At one plant half the workers refused to come back to work and the UAW told them they would not stop the automaker from firing them.

 

[GreyFox]

There is no evidence the workers caught the virus at work, more likely in their non-work hours. Here there was a big infection in March because a large crowd went to a 15 year old girls quinceanera party in violation of health directives and many became infected. Because most worked at a meat packing plant they blamed it on the employer instead of their own irresponsibility.
The UAW and the automakers agreed to procedures to reopen so the workers need to follow them and go to work. At one plant half the workers refused to come back to work and the UAW told them they would not stop the automaker from firing them.

Get outta here with that common sense logic

 

[GreyFox]

Peeps, is it my imagination or is Jalopnik like while it reports on the updates and things pertain to Jeep - it seems like most of the articles have some kind of slanted opinion like it was written by some CHAZ occupier but really REALLY want a Jeep. I stopped reading their stuff long time ago due what I perceived as bias.

National Enquirer of the auto world

 

[DanW]

This Pandemic will lead to more automation in all areas of production ; will the money saved go to a Basic Minimum Income for displaced workers ? Should it ?

Uh, that would be a strain of Socialism close to Communism. It doesn't work. It has been tried. I have to show up to work or I lose my Job. Nobody is forcing me to stay there. I have a choice. I choose to stay. They have a choice. Plenty of jobs out there. Just my humble opinion.

 

[four low]

Absolutely correct, has been tried, didn't Work ( no pun intended) BUT ; those who forget History, or willfully Erase it, are doomed to repeat it. Happening as we speak.

 

[DanW]

Absolutely correct, has been tried, didn't Work ( no pun intended) BUT ; those who forget History, or willfully Erase it, are doomed to repeat it. Happening as we speak.

Couldn't agree more!

 

[Spank]

Peeps, is it my imagination or is Jalopnik like while it reports on the updates and things pertain to Jeep - it seems like most of the articles have some kind of slanted opinion like it was written by some CHAZ occupier THAT really REALLY want a Jeep. I stopped reading their stuff long time ago due what I perceived as bias.

Isn't that the site with the guy who continues to buy garbage vehicles literally worth less than nothing, attempts to fix them and fails miserably every single time, documents his misadventures to the surprise of nobody, eventually gives up and gets rid of the vehicle at an even further loss, ponders the poor decisions of his life while learning nothing, and then does it all over again?

I mean, the guys from Jackass spent a lot of time doing utterly stupid shit, too, but they at least got paid good money for it.

 

[aldo98229]

There is no evidence the workers caught the virus at work, more likely in their non-work hours. Here there was a big infection in March because a large crowd went to a 15 year old girls quinceanera party in violation of health directives and many became infected. Because most worked at a meat packing plant they blamed it on the employer instead of their own irresponsibility.
The UAW and the automakers agreed to procedures to reopen so the workers need to follow them and go to work. At one plant half the workers refused to come back to work and the UAW told them they would not stop the automaker from firing them.

It doesn't matter where they caught it. Everyone has a personal life outside of work whether it is an assemby line worker, a meat packer, a church goer or a spring breaker.

But that doesn't mean that once the infection is detected, you keep packing them inside plants/schools/churches in the name of reopening the economy, keep spreading the disease and exposing everyone.

In this particular case, FCA has to implement regular tests and procedures to minimize the opportunity of the virus to enter the workplace. And if it does, then it needs to do whatever it is within its power to safeguard the safety of employees. Even if it means temporarily shutting down production.

We are not going back to normal until we have the spread under control or we have a vaccine. We have neither at the moment, so it is foolish of FCA to operate pretending things are "back to normal."

 

[bryan]

But that doesn't mean that once the infection is detected, you keep packing them inside plants/schools/churches to keep spreading the disease/

The first stoppage was on June 25 at Jefferson North in Detroit, where a worker who later tested negative was sent home and workers there stopped in solidarity.

Stopping in solidarity, not from health concerns. That means they were protesting a worker being sent away in order to protect their health. Of course the UAW isn't going to object to discipline. It's funny how some people leap to the big bad company theory. That makes no sense. It's in the best financial interest of FCA to have a healthy workforce.

 

[Rudolph Hart]

Right - and when you buy a top of the line Jeep JLU Rubicon with all the spiffed up configuration, you are supporting this corporate imperatives! Now whats your point about being disgusting again??

Lol

 

[aldo98229]

There are also economic ramifications due to cease in productions - I think that life/work must resume, empowered by what we learned about COVID to better take care of ourselves and the workplace.

No doubt. But the economy is not going back to normal until we have this thing under control or we have a vaccine, which we clearly do not have right now.

Anyone who can understand statistics and probabilities.

I'm frankly surprised most of you have ever left the house considering the off chance that you might be killed in a car accident, struck by lightening, etc.

Oh God please spare me this nonesense...

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