The head of the union local representing Ford workers in Windsor-Essex is happy the province is naming a so-called auto czar, but thinks it's just a first step.
President of Unifor Local 200 Chris Taylor says it would have been helpful when Ford was considering a major investment in Windsor last October and chose Mexico instead. "Just the fact that they could've had somebody who could have navigated them through the bureaucratic process."
Minister of Economic Development, Employment and Infrastructure Brad Duguid and federal Industry Minister James Moore held a press conference in Toronto this afternoon where they named former Toyota executive Ray Tanguay as a special adviser on the auto sector.
Taylor thinks Tanguay's a good fit. "He lives, breathes and his blood is auto," he says. "We need someone who understands what those OEMs (Original Equipment Manufacturers) are looking at when they want to come knocking on our door."
However, Taylor believes Ontario and Canada will have to do a lot more if it wants to turn the province and the country's fortunes around in the global auto industry. He says companies looking to invest here have a lot of hurdles to climb while other jurisdictions make it as easy as possible. "Right now, if you go on a website and punch in Monterrey, Mexico, they'll bring up what you need to do for investment there and it's actually on the website," says Taylor. "For the Ford investment, we didn't know if we had to go to the feds first, or the province first."
Speaking at the Automotive Parts Manufacturers Association conference in Windsor last week, federal International Trade Minister Ed Fast suggested taxpayers won't stomach greater monetary incentives for companies already making profits. Taylor says taxpayers, especially in Windsor and Oshawa, are more tolerant because they see first hand the impact those investments can have on local economies.
