Hundreds of workers laid off at Ingersoll, Ont., assembly plant as GM halts production

The General Motors CAMI Assembly plant in Ingersoll, Ont., will shut down next month with plans to reopen in the fall at half capacity.

The company said in a statement Friday that production is coming to halt as a direct result of the market and available inventory to build the BrightDrop electric delivery vehicles manufactured at the plant.

“CAMI is making operational and employment adjustments to balance inventory and align production schedules with current demand,” GM said in a statement.

“GM remains committed to the future of BrightDrop and the CAMI plant and will support employees through the transition.”

Two models of the BrightDrop Zevo are made on site and sales have lagged behind the competition, with numbers released by GM showing a total of 427 vehicles sold in Canada in 2024 and 1,529 in the United States.

“It’s heartbreaking, certainly for the individuals who are affected by it in our community,” said Ingersoll Mayor Brian Petrie.

“We want to take care of people, that’s what it’s really about. Everybody has families and I know that there is an action centre being set up at Unifor to help people, and we’ll be certainly doing everything we can through the town to work with our partners to support people.”

WATCH | Unifor local chair says temporary closure, scaleback of CAMI plant is ‘devastating’:

GM plant chair says Ingersoll plant shutdown ‘devastating’ to community

Mike Van Boekel, Unifor Local 88 CAMI plant chair, says Friday’s announcement of a temporary shutdown of the GM assembly plant in Ingersoll, Ont., resulting in hundreds of layoffs, wasn’t a shock due to struggling sales and the Trump tariffs were ‘the final nail in the coffin.’

The news follows the temporary closure of Stellantis’s Windsor Assembly Plant in Windsor, Ont., that was announced in early April, following the imposition of U.S. auto tariffs.

The CAMI plant employs approximately 1,200 workers. Unifor said layoffs will start Monday, with some production continuing into May. 

After that, production will stop until October, the union said in a statement. 

“When production resumes in October, the plant will operate on a single shift for the foreseeable future — a reduction that is expected to result in the indefinite layoff of nearly 500 workers,” the statement read.

“Our members have endured so much — from retooling disruptions to months of rotating layoffs — and now they’re facing a major production slowdown and job loss,” said Unifor Local 88 CAMI plant chair Mike Van Boekel.

“Global demand for last-mile delivery vehicles is only growing. Our members have the skill, the experience and the pride to build world-class electric vehicles right here in Canada — all we need is the opportunity to keep doing it.”

Politicians respond to the news

Following confirmation of the layoffs and shutdown, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre was the first leader to react to the news, issuing a statement on social media.

“I am incredibly saddened by the layoffs at the GM CAMI Assembly plant in Ingersoll,” Poilievre wrote. “This morning, I spoke with Unifor Local 88 GM Plant Chairperson Mike Van Boekel and expressed my commitment to protect Canadian auto workers.”

Poilievre’s statement took aim at U.S. President Donald Trump, saying he “is betraying America’s closest friend and attacking our economy.”

Conservative candidate Arpan Khanna, who is running for re-election in the riding of Oxford, which includes Ingersoll, issued a statement as well, minutes after the news broke.

“This situation goes beyond just a headline — it’s a major loss for our community. It’s 500 of our families, friends and neighbours,” Khanna said.

Liberal Leader Mark Carney’s statement issued late afternoon called the layoffs “deeply painful.”

“My government is fighting to defend our auto sector, protect our workers and build our supply chains in Canada,” he wrote. “We’ve made it easier for affected workers to access support, including waiving the EI waiting period.”

NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh, also in a statement, said the “devastating” layoffs will have hundreds of people worrying about their future.

“It’s time to put workers and jobs at the heart of Canada’s tariff fightback plan. To raise [employment insurance] so it actually covers the bills, and to launch the Build Canadian Buy Canadian action plan to keep more workers on the job,” Singh wrote. 

Petrie remains hopeful that production will return to the plant in the future.

“We have the best workforce in the world. I know that’s going to be successful in the long term. You can’t move that, you can’t take it anywhere else. It’s here and it’s been successful for over 100 years and will continue to do so.”