LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- A day after the United Autoworkers union took the gloves off by striking Kentucky Truck Plant, top Ford executives said they were mystified by the decision and that they've reached the limit of added costs the company is willing to incur in a new four-year labor contract.
In a call with reporters, Ford executives blasted the UAW's surprise move Wednesday, calling KTP one of the most important auto plants in the world and saying the decision will reverberate far beyond Louisville and the plant's 8,700 hourly workers.
"We know UAW leadership set out to wound Ford for months, but this goes way beyond just hitting Ford's profits," said Kumar Galhotra, president of Ford Blue, the company's gas-powered vehicle division.
Among the many follow-on effects of KTP's shutdown are the operations of a dozen Ford component plants that feed KTP, and two Ford assembly plants — one of which is Louisville Assembly Plant — that get stamped parts from KTP.
Ford executives said these plants could soon be disrupted, but they wouldn't say when any layoffs may occur.
"As for up- and downstream layoffs as result of work stoppages, we announce them as they occur, not prospectively," said Ford's T.R. Reid.
But the top local union official, Todd Dunn, president of UAW Local 862, said LAP could shut down as soon as Friday.
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