Stellantis, the parent company of Jeep, has said that its plant in Belvidere, Illinois, will shut down for good at the end of February as a "necessary action" because of the rising costs of electric vehicles and other issues in the industry. The facility west of Chicago that produces the Jeep Cherokee currently employs 1,350 hourly and salaried workers. Layoff notices have been sent to everyone.
Stellantis spokeswoman Jodi Tinson said in a statement, "Our industry has been adversely affected by a multitude of factors, like the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the global microchip shortage, but the most impactful challenge is the increasing cost related to the electrification of the automotive market." To maintain affordability and quality customer satisfaction, Stellantis has taken a number of steps to stabilize production and increase efficiency at its North American facilities. The United Auto Workers union has pledged to "fight back against this announcement," as expected. It very well might be a battle they can't win.
UAW President Ray Curry stated, "We believe Stellantis is grossly misguided in idling this plant, which has produced profits for the company since 1965." It is unacceptable to deny plants like Belvidere access to new products. It also shows a cruel disregard for the contributions of our members from UAW Locals 1268 and 1761 by announcing the closure just a few weeks before the holidays.
Except for the timing, the announcement is not particularly surprising. The facility has already experienced downtime and layoffs, and its future status has been uncertain for some time. Stellantis went on to say that it will do everything in its power to move laid-off workers to full-time positions at other plants as soon as they become available.
However, the automaker has not responded to the following inquiry: What are the Cherokee's statuses? The only factory in North America that makes the crossover for this market is Belvidere. Will Cherokee production be relocated, perhaps once more to Toledo, Ohio? In 2017, Jeep moved production of the Cherokee to Belvidere from Toledo.
CarBuzz has connected with Stellantis looking for input, and we'll refresh this article on the off chance that we get an answer. The Cherokee's future is still uncertain until then, and in just a few months, over 1,300 people are likely to lose their jobs.
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