Despite Risks, Auto Workers Step Up to Make Medical Gear
All over the country, blue-collar and salaried workers have volunteered to make medical equipment as companies repurpose factories to answer calls for help from beleaguered healthcare workers who are treating patients with COVID-19. Workers also are making soap and hand sanitizer, which early in the crisis were in short supply.
At Ford, over 800 people returned to work at four Detroit-area sites. General Motors has about 400 at a now-closed transmission plant in suburban Detroit and an electronics factory in Kokomo, Indiana, working on shields and ventilators. About 60 Toyota workers, both salaried and blue-collar, are making protective equipment in Kentucky, Texas, Michigan, and Alabama.
Most automakers in the U.S. temporarily stopped making vehicles about a month ago after workers complained about the risks of infection at the factories. Many white-collar workers are being paid to work remotely but members of the United Auto Workers who don’t have that option are still collecting pay and unemployment benefits that equal about 95% of regular take-home wages.
Those workers making medical gear will get their full base pay, but that’s not what’s motivating them to keep coming to the factories. Many simply want to help.
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