Hundreds Of Autoworkers Laid Off At 2 Metro Detroit Plants Amid UAW Strike

METRO DETROIT — Ford Motor Co. announced Wednesday it's temporarily laying off hundreds of workers at two Metro Detroit plants because of the ongoing United Auto Workers strike.

The automaker said the layoffs will affect 350 workers at the Livonia Transmission Plant and 50 workers at the Sterling Axle Plant in Sterling Heights.

The automaker said both factories make parts that are directly sent to the Chicago Assembly Plant, where thousands of workers walked out and joined the strike last Friday.

"Our production system is highly interconnected, which means the UAW’s targeted strike strategy has knock-on effects for facilities that are not directly targeted for a work stoppage," Ford said in a statement.

The new round of layoffs join the 930 workers who were laid off over the last two weeks, bringing Ford's total to 1,330 employees impacted.

As of Thursday morning, roughly 25,000 United Auto Workers members were on strike against Detroit's Big Three. The walkouts are part of a plan United Auto Workers President Shawn Fain calls "Stand Up Strike," which is a strategy to target specific plants.

The historic UAW strike against Detroit's Big Three began on Sept. 8 after the union's contract expired without a new one in place. It's the first time ever the union launched a strike against all three automakers at the same time.

The union is calling on the automakers for a 46 percent wage increase and a 32-hour workweek for its members. The union also wants to eliminate the wage tiered system, restore cost of living adjustments, end temporary workers after 90 days and increase multiple retiree benefits.