July 22, 2008

Slumping U.S. economy blamed for layoffs at Sterling’s St. Thomas truck plant

ST. THOMAS, Ont.

Sterling Trucks is eliminating one of its two remaining shifts and laying off another 720 workers as of November 2008, as the southwestern Ontario manufacturer joins the growing ranks of companies being squeezed by an economic slowdown in the U.S.

A year ago, Sterling laid off an additional 600 people in St. Thomas when another shift was cut, said Dave Elliott, president of the Canadian Auto Workers Local 1001.

Back when there were three shifts, “We built trucks pretty much 24 hours a day, five days a week,” Elliott said.

But with the economy in a slump, “freight’s not moving, construction is down — nobody is buying trucks.”

Sterling Truck is headquartered in Redford, Michigan, and is a subsidiary of Daimler Trucks North America of Portland, Oregon.

The facility produces a range of vehicles under the Sterling brand, from small delivery trucks and highway rigs to cement mixers and garbage trucks.

Canadian Press

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