JANESVILLE, Wis. — As the last SUV rolled off the production line at General Motors' oldest plant here Tuesday, Karen Green promised herself she would keep her emotions in check.
The Janesville plant was built in 1918 for tractor production and converted to a Chevrolet plant in 1923. Green had worked on the assembly line for 14 years.
When plant and union officials began thanking workers for their years of service, however, she couldn't hold back the tears.
"I was pretty good up until the end. Then I lost it," said Green, 55, of Fort Atkinson. "It was just so somber, so sad."
Green was one of 1,200 employees let go when GM ended production at the southern Wisconsin plant.
Another 800 or so jobs have been lost at local companies that supplied GM parts.
Over the years, workers churned out sedans and SUVs, including Chevrolet Suburbans and GMC Yukons. But demand for big vehicles plummeted during the days of $4 gas this summer and failed to recover as fuel prices came down.
"We gave it a pretty good run for 85 years," said Steve Kriefall, 58, of Janesville. "But these are tough times now, and it's hard to see it come to this."
The Janesville plant was built in 1918 for tractor production and converted to a Chevrolet plant in 1923. Green had worked on the assembly line for 14 years.
When plant and union officials began thanking workers for their years of service, however, she couldn't hold back the tears.
"I was pretty good up until the end. Then I lost it," said Green, 55, of Fort Atkinson. "It was just so somber, so sad."
Green was one of 1,200 employees let go when GM ended production at the southern Wisconsin plant.
Another 800 or so jobs have been lost at local companies that supplied GM parts.
Over the years, workers churned out sedans and SUVs, including Chevrolet Suburbans and GMC Yukons. But demand for big vehicles plummeted during the days of $4 gas this summer and failed to recover as fuel prices came down.
"We gave it a pretty good run for 85 years," said Steve Kriefall, 58, of Janesville. "But these are tough times now, and it's hard to see it come to this."
No comments:
Post a Comment