Workers to fight for Ford plants

DETROIT — Ford Motor Co. workers and local officials said Friday they'll do everything in their power to keep plants open after a report suggested Ford is considering closing five North American plants as part of a major restructuring.

Lawmakers and union officials said they would pile on tax breaks or change plant work rules to encourage Ford to stay. In Minnesota, House Speaker Steve Sviggum, the Legislature's top Republican, said he wouldn't rule out pushing for a special session to consider incentives for keeping a plant in St. Paul.

"We're not going to let this go without a fight," he said. "We're going to give every incentive we can to make sure these jobs are maintained."

The Wall Street Journal reported Friday that the nation's second-biggest automak- er is likely to close assembly plants in St. Louis, Atlanta and St. Paul under a still-evolving restructuring plan. It cited two unidentified people familiar with the automaker's product plans.

The newspaper said an engine-parts plant in Windsor, Ontario, and a truck-assembly plant in Cuautitlan, Mexico, also are slated for closure.

If Ford closes the plants, it would deal another blow to U.S. autoworkers, already reeling from a plan announced last month by General Motors Corp. to close 12 North American facilities and cut 30,000 jobs. The nation's car manufacturers are suffering from declining sales, especially of sport utility vehicles, even as the cost of labor and health care rises.

Ford shares rose 5 cents to close at $8.15 on the New York Stock Exchange on Friday.

Together, the Ford plants cited in Friday's report employ around 7,000 people, according to Ford's Web site. Ford had a total of 122,877 North American employees at the end of last year. The automaker, based in Dearborn, Mich., has around 324,000 employees worldwide.

Ford has been struggling with declining U.S. market share, high labor costs and excess plant capacity. The company reported a $1.2 billion pretax loss in its North American automotive operations in the third quarter.

Ford Chairman and CEO Bill Ford has said the company is working on a restructuring plan and will reveal details in January. Bill Ford said in October the plan will include "significant" job cuts and plant closures.

Ford is only using around 86 percent of its North American assembly plant capacity, compared to 107 percent at rival Toyota Motor Corp. Ford has 23 assembly plants in North America.