Ford announces 400 layoffs in Metro Detroit amid UAW strike

(CBS DETROIT) – Ford Motor Company announced about 400 workers in Metro Detroit have been laid off as a result of the United Auto Workers strike.

The automaker says 350 workers at the Livonia Transmission Plant and 50 workers at the Sterling Axle Plant have been instructed not to return to work effective Thursday, Oct. 5.

“These are not lockouts. These layoffs are a consequence of the strike at Chicago Assembly Plant because these two facilities must reduce production of parts that would normally be shipped to Chicago Assembly Plant,” Ford said in a statement.

The layoffs come a day after Ford presented its seventh offer to UAW, calling it the “strongest” offer made.

The proposed agreement would run through April 30, 2028, Ford said on Wednesday. The company says the offer includes “unprecedented improvements in wages (putting employees among the top 25% of all U.S. jobs, hourly and salaried) and benefits, product commitments for every UAW factory, and job security.”

It is not the first time the automaker has laid off workers in Metro Detroit since the strike started on Sept. 15.

Last month, the company also temporarily laid off about 600 workers at the Michigan Assembly plant in Wayne. 

Most recently, Ford announced about 330 layoffs at the Chicago Stamping and Lima Engine plants.