London autoparts maker Brose cutting 300 workers as production slows

Grappling with order losses and lower production volumes, Brose North America has given working notice to the majority of its staff at its London, Ontario facility.

The autoparts maker announced on September 1, 2022 that it will cut 300 jobs by the end of 2023 as it moves seat production lines to its other facilities.

In a statement, Wilm Uhlenbecker, President of Brose North America, said that overcapacity in several of the company’s plants has led to “high structural costs.”

“In addition, auto manufacturers are further increasing pressure on prices and requiring suppliers to shift production to lower cost countries,” Uhlenbecker said. “This was not an easy decision, but cost priorities, parts shortages, lowered production volumes, and other market turbulence have made competitive manufacturing at our London location impossible.”

Operating 12 manufacturing facilities across Canada, the U.S., and Mexico, the company’s London plant opened its doors more than 17 years ago.

According to its website, Brose North America employs a workforce of approximately 6,000 people.

READ MORE
• Ford cutting 3,000 jobs as it focuses on electric vehicles
• Elon Musk to Tesla employees: Come back or get out
• Layoffs in Canada

Termination agreements for Brose employees

In Canada, non-unionized employees at Brose are owed full severance pay when they lose their jobs due to downsizing or corporate restructuring.

Severance in Ontario can be as much as 24 months’ pay, depending on a number of factors.

LEARN MORE
• Mass layoffs in Ontario: Rights to severance
• Employment lawyer on worker rights in the event of a layoff

WATCH: Employment lawyer Lior Samfiru explains why you are still owed severance if you have been downsized on an episode of the Employment Law Show.

Before you accept any severance offer, have an experienced employment lawyer at Samfiru Tumarkin LLP review it and your employment contract. We can tell you if what you have been provided is fair and how to get proper severance if it falls short of what you are actually owed.

If you don’t receive the full amount, which happens often, you have been wrongfully dismissed and are entitled to compensation.