Automakers have cut Canadian production and warn deliveries of new vehicles to dealerships will be delayed due to an ongoing blockade at one of North America’s busiest land border crossings.
Protestors, demanding anything from the end of vaccine mandates to the ousting of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, brought traffic onto and off the Ambassador Bridge to a standstill Monday evening in Windsor, Ont. and refuse to budge until certain public health measures, such as vaccine mandates, designed to curb the spread of COVID-19, are rescinded.
Stellantis confirmed that its Windsor Assembly Plant had to shorten its first shift and afternoon shift Tuesday due to parts shortages. The plant was running Wednesday morning.
“Additionally, the first shift at the Brampton Assembly Plant was shortened on Wednesday. The second shift is expected to report as scheduled. We continue to work closely with our carriers to get parts into the plants to mitigate further disruptions,” the automaker said in a statement late Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Unifor Local 200 President John D’Agnolo said Ford Canada idled its engine assembly operations in Windsor on Wednesday, but that “we will be running [Thursday].”
Ford Motor Co. said the interruption hurt production at some of the second-largest U.S. automaker’s plants in Canada.
“While we continue to ship our current engine inventory to support our U.S. plants, we are running our plants at a reduced schedule today in Oakville (Ontario) and our Windsor engine plant is down,” said Ford spokesman Said Deep. “We hope this situation is resolved quickly because it could have widespread impact on all automakers in the U.S. and Canada.”
General Motors Canada referred any questions to Brian Kingston of the Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers’ Association.
Kingston wouldn’t comment on specific plants but warned that “the longer this goes on, the more risk there is to production.”
“Ongoing border blockades are disrupting trade and now hurting thousands of workers in the auto sector on both sides of the border,” Kingston later said in a statement Wednesday afternoon. “The time has come for our governments at all levels to enforce their laws, end the blockades and restore the cross-border trade.”
Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada said: “While the situation is fluid and changes frequently, we do not anticipate any impact to employment at this time.”
“Due to a number of supply chain, severe weather and COVID related challenges, Toyota continues to face shortages affecting production at our North American plants, including Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada,” a company spokesman said via email Wednesday evening. “Our teams are working diligently to minimize the impact on production.”
Meanwhile, the group that represents thousands of franchised Canadian new-vehicle dealers warned on Wednesday afternoon that the blockade is now affecting already-tight inventory.
“Various OEMs have started communicating with our dealer members to let them know that they should expect delays in vehicle and parts shipments over the coming days,” said Tim Reuss, CEO of the Canadian Automobile Dealers Association (CADA), which represents about 3,300 retailers.
On the supply front, Tracy Fuerst, spokeswoman for Magna International, said the company’s parts plants “are managing the supply chain constraints caused by the blockade,” although “we’ve had to be a bit creative by using other ports of entry into Canada and the U.S.”
CADA, along with several Canadian and U.S. business associations signed a statement issued Tuesday by the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, calling for a swift end to the blockade, said Reuss.
The U.S. government addressed the issue Wednesday, warning that the blockade risks hurting the auto industry, which is already dealing with a global shortage of semiconductors.
“I think it’s important for everyone in Canada and the United States to understand what the impact of this blockage is — potential impact — on workers, on the supply chain, and that is where we’re most focused,” White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said on Wednesday. “We’re also looking to tracking potential disruptions to U.S. agricultural exports from Michigan into Canada.”
The Ambassador Bridge is Canada’s busiest link to the United States and accounts for about 25 percent of trade between the two countries.
“So the blockade poses a risk to supply chains for the auto industry because the bridge is a key conduit for motor vehicles, components and parts, and delays risk disrupting auto production,” Psaki said.
Bank of Canada Governor Tiff Macklem called for a swift resolution.
“If there were to be prolonged blockages at key entry points into Canada that could start to have a measurable impact on economic activity in Canada,” he said.
“We’ve already got a strained global supply chain. We don’t need this.”
The protests were disrupting jobs and the economy’s supply chain and “must end before further damage occurs,” Canada’s Emergency Preparedness Minister, Bill Blair, told reporters in a press briefing.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford issued a statement late Wednesday:
“The ongoing illegal occupation and blockade happening in Ontario must stop. The Ambassador Bridge is one of the most vital trade corridors in our country. The damage this is causing to our economy, to people’s jobs and their livelihoods is totally unacceptable. We cannot let this continue,” he said.
“Protecting the cross-border movement of essential goods across our highly integrated Canada-U.S. supply chains is vitally important, especially as trade and the free movement of goods will play a crucial role in our economic recovery,” she added in a statement to Automotive News Canada.
‘Willing to die’
At a press conference earlier Wednesday, both Windsor police and city officials said they were seeking a peaceful resolution.
“We have heard from countless residents for police just to go in there and remove everybody,” said Mayor Drew Dilkens. “But we have heard from one woman involved [in the protest] who outwardly stated she was so passionate about her cause she was willing to die for it.
“It is that type of sentiment we are dealing with,” said Dilkens. “We don’t want things to escalate where it is dangerous for members of police, the community or protesters themselves.”
Windsor Police Chief Pam Mizuno said the force has requested additional officers, vehicles and intelligence support from the provincial and federal governments.
The mayor also expressed concern about the “lasting and permanent impact” the protest will have on the region’s competitiveness. He noted that Windsor and Essex County is home to one of the largest automotive clusters in Canada. “Business requires certainty,” he said.
Only passenger vehicles can access the bridge through an entrance off a more residential street. And commercial trucks are also banned from using the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel which connects the downtown cores of each city. As the demonstrators occupy the road leading to the bridge, the CBSA is encouraging truck traffic to use the Bluewater Bridge in Sarnia, Ont., about 90 minutes north of the Windsor crossing.
The Michigan Department of Transportation said the Ambassador Bridge remained closed on the U.S. side. It also advised those headed to Canada to use the Port Huron, Mich., crossing, which connects that American city with Sarnia.
Mold makers ‘up in arms’
The mold making industry was watching the bridge closure and protests with increasing concern.
The Canadian Association of Moldmakers and Automate Canada said they were sending a joint letter to Trudeau asking for stronger action to resolve the crisis.
Jeanine Lassaline-Berglund, president of both organizations, said some member companies are “up in arms” about the business disruptions. She said one company noted it sends C$4.5 million (US$3.5 million) in tooling across the border each month.
She said the Canadian firms are worried the shutdown will make U.S. customers more reluctant to source in Canada, on top of the struggles with border trade during the two years of the coronavirus pandemic.
“This has the potential for devastating effect,” she said. “In our opinion, we have U.S. customers and the U.S. public at large, if you will, that are watching what is going on here and saying, ‘This is just one more reason not to do business in Canada.’”
She said the two groups, which are based in Windsor, were encouraging the government to talk with protestors.
“We need resolution,” she said. “However you can come to a resolution, we need it. We’re here to support.”
Industry consultant Laurie Harbour said the bridge shutdown could have significant impact, noting that many mold builders in Canada buy steel and components from the U.S.
“This could delay builds and deliveries to customers which will cause a ripple effect to molders that won’t be able to make parts for new vehicle launches,” said Harbour, who is president and CEO of Harbour Results in Southfield, Mich. “I don’t have hard data but this could have a significant impact if it goes on too long.”
Reuters, Bloomberg, Plastics News and Grace Macaluso and Rob Bostelaar of Automotive News Canada contributed to this report.