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This is what some of the visitors to our site had to say when they filled out our feedback form...
Since May 27 (Newer comments first)
| I fully support your intiative! I am a graduate student currently completing a one-year internship in Edmonton, Alberta. I see the booming Alberta ecomony all around me daily, and lament that Windsor's economy is suffering by comparison. Not to discount the wealth of our Alberta brothers and sisters, enlightened Canadians surely realize that our future is not in our traditional dependence on natural resources, but our ability to add value to products and services. Windsor is an important barometer of that key sector of our economy. I look forward to returning to Windsor! |
| Brian K. (Edmonton, AB) |
| I believe our local workforce is being greatly impacted by foreign manufacturing and outsourcing. I worked for Hallmark Technologies. The closure was devistating for all involved. I'm one of the very few lucky folks who found work in my field relatively quickly. I now suffer from daily stress with the constant feeling that the rug could, once again, be pulled out from under my feet. I can't settle in or feel comfortable in my new job because there is literally no security for anyone in this industry. Many of my former coworkers have tried to make their way in other industries - some successfully, others not so. Getting an education and starting from scratch is something college-aged people do. It is, at best, an enormous challenge for someone who is halfway through their working life and has a family to support. At worse, it is insurmountable and is detrimental to physical and mental health and relationships. Thank you for rallying on behalf of all of us who have been and could be affected by this trend. |
| Anonymous (Windsor, ON) |
Before May 27 (Older comments first)
| This year sees the end of three generations of my family proudly working in the manufacturing industry. For financial reason as well as not seeing any light at the end of the tunnel I took the buyout from Ford Mo. Co. My father is taking the retirement package and my grandfather was a retiree. This is a tragedy. |
| Shannon R. (Windsor, ON) |
| We have to wake this country up!! We are going to become a third world country if our government allows imports to continue to be sold in Canada. I was laid off from Fords almost 3 years ago and I know I will never have another job like it. I had good wages and benefits. Now I make a third of my Ford wages and a third of the benefits. If we don't make the good money, we can't spend it. I can't even pay all of my bills--my mother is assisting me with my mortgage payments--how pathetic!!! |
| Marilyn R. (Leamington, ON) |
| I hope that everyone sees the bigger picture here and sees the loss of manufacturing jobs not just in the automotive sector, but everywhere. I frequently see my union brothers and sisters raving about the deals they find at the dollar store and Wal-Mart. We are allowing this purge of our manufacturing jobs by making the purchases we do. We vote with our dollars, and need to share in the responsibility of what is happening in our community. |
| Chris H. (Windsor, ON) |
| DailmerChrysler, the owners of Sterling trucks has begun building a second plant in Mexico. This plant will be twice the size of the plant in St. Thomas. Unless the government inacts laws protecting Canadian manufacturing, I feel our plant may fall victim to the far lower wages, non-exsitant health and safty laws and lower employement standars of Mexico. When CEO's want a higher profit margin our plant could be sacrificed at a moments notice. |
| Aaron Q. (St. Thomas, ON) |
| I cannot for the life of me figure out how the Government does not see what is happening and what kind of spin off effect it will have on all business sectors in all provinces. We need tariff's or 100% Canadian content now! |
| Ray C. (Windsor, ON) |
| Glad to see the soldarity that is evident in the community of Windsor. Perhaps it will be infectious and other parts of Canada will follow the lead of our sisters and brothers in the area. It is time we stood in solidarity for the current and future workers in Canada, Ottawa needs to know that these jobs are valued and they need to do something NOW. |
| Cheryl R. (Saint John, NB) |
| It is too important to not attend. We can't keep thinking someone else is going to do these things for us. We need all of the workers and everyone that loves this region to be there and show industry and government we are willing to work and do whatever is necessary to make this city and region what it once was. |
| Mike B. (Tecumseh, ON) |
| I support this rally because the manufacturing sector is very important to this area. I am not able to attend Sunday May 27, however I fully support all the initiatives that are being rallied for. |
| Michelle I. (Leamington, ON) |
| My parents, inlaws and others that I am connected to are employed by the automotive industry. |
| Randy S. (Windsor, ON) |
| The Caw Local 200 has been very supportive to the Kids Alliance Program of which I am the coordinator. This program has been able to provide thousands of youth with learning and skill building opportunities over the past 10 years while helping these youth to improve their neighbourhoods. Without the support of the local unions specificaly CAW Local 200 many of these successes would not have been possible. The leadership in giving back to our community by the CAW has made a tremendous difference in the lives of the residents of Windsor and Essex County. This is why all of Kids Alliance is supporting this rally. |
| Joe P. (Leamington, ON) |
| I support this initiative because of what I believe it stands for. Many times as workers we feel that we have little to say about the fate of where companies decide to do business. Consequently we feel that we have little control over our own destiny and that of our families. This march/rally indicates to me that we do have a say over what happens. If nothing else this event allows us to say that we care about our community and the jobs that keep it alive. It is a testament to our courage and fortitude when people from the city with highest unemployment rate in the country say we are not willing to abandon our homes, and all that we know and get on the first plane/train to Alberta. |
| Chris A. (LaSalle, ON) |
| The offshore competition, is going to be manufacturing's demise in this country. We cannot compete with wages, benefits and government subsidies that are implemented in off shore companies, especially in China. Our governments sit idly by and let this happen even though some of the events that are happening in China are directly against The World Trade Organization's rules and regulations. You might want to pass on that Good Year tire has announced that they are closing their plants in the US, Canada, New Zealand and the UK and moving everything to China. This is where government must step in an impose tariffs if they want to sell their tires back here. Personally, I wil never buy another Good Year tire, or any other product from a company that has closed here and moved off shore. They should all be boycotted. |
| Bill S. (Windsor, ON) |
| A few days ago I attended a visit to my dentist along with my wife and two children. Upon settling in I was told they were glad to see us. Inquisitively, I asked why. The hygienist replied, stating the number of appointments they book has markedly dropped off with the escalating job cuts in manufacturing, depleting revenue and earnings. Say, who’d have thought dentists, hygienists, and the like would be affected by globalization, right? |
| Bob R. (Amherstburg, ON) |
| I only hope all of the people attending the rally and those leaving comments in the forum are serious about this. This means, as consumers, we have to stop buying off shore manufactured goods, even if it costs us more money. Not just autos....everything. I'm prepared to do it. Are you? |
| Anonymous |
| Lost my job at Fords and my mold shop I was lucky enough to get back into is VERY SLOW. I`ve been laid off from Fords for almost three years now, with two little ones at home it sickens me to think I will never get back into fords and support my family the way I would like, now we pretty much stay home seven days a week because we can`t afford to do anything. |
| Thomas (Ontario) |
| I have been in the trade as a machinist since 1988 and saw a good well paying career for the rest of my life. But now all these corporations are sending our futures overseas to China and India. Hense no one has the cash to continue buying North American which makes them lay off and this cycle is continuing at a dangerous pace. in closing I don't know what mine or anyones future will be like! |
| Jim U. (Windsor, ON) |
| I'm Canadian. My father is an American. I've spent a lot of time in both countries, enough to see what's happening across the board. Our middle class is being stripped away. You can read about it, headline after headline, publication after publication. Plant closings, pensions declining, poor quality, charity and social structure failings, business closings, health care reductions..... Its crippling and its getting worse. Our governements need to listen. Consumers need to act. As job losses mount and wages fall we're more and more forced to buy poor quality, unsafe crap being dumped into our economy by big box stores every day. It needs to stop! Its making the rich richer and the middle class poor. |
| Bob R. (Amherstburg, ON) |
| Being an engineer, and laid off twice in the past 4 years, everyone is affected. This "perfect storm" has 2 main factors as far as I can assess. The first being the "globalization" or expanding free trade (more like one-way trade) to the world, and China's explosive economic impact. The more significant impact is USA under GWB. GWB has launched 2 unnecessary wars and has spent 300 BILLION DOLLARS and counting. This is the equivalent of taking that money and literally burning it. If 1/10th of that money was reinvested to subsidize health care for manufacturing workers in the USA, the Big 3 would have been more competitive against Toyota and the Big 3 would have had capital to invest locally. The rest could have been invested in technology to make North America the world leader in new product innovation IN ALL SECTORS. Without these wars that have done nothing but kill people for no reason, and put USA into a huge deficit, the currency rates would have been maintained at a healthy level between Canada and the USA instead of parity which will come within 1 year. |
| M.A. (Windsor, ON) |
| I am writing to express my support for your efforts as well as my indignity about the paucity of action municipally, provincially, and federally concerning the current state of our communities and our city. I wish you all successes on Sunday. |
| S.P. (University of Windsor - Associate Professor) |
| Today I was told that a supervisor would be away from the college for two weeks. This person was going away to recruit students for manufacturing technology programs in the Ford Centre for Manufacturing Excellence. These programs are in dandger of being cancelled due to low enrollment. Where do you think this recruitment drive is headed? If you guessed Alberta you'd be wrong. They are going to CHINA! |
| Anonymous (St. Clair College) |
| I was just informed that my full time 40 hour a week job that I have had for 7 years is now cut back to 24 hours per week. This is supposed to be temporary for at least 26 weeks. At that time I could be laid off. I have a mortgage to pay and other expenses. I will still be driving to work 5 days a week so even my travel expense will not be reduced. I am non union so I have no support from anyone. If I do not look for another job immediately I will not be able to make my payments. If I try to stay and then get laid off later I will receive unemployment at the rate I was making with my 24 hours. I don't know anyone who could possibly live on that. My reduction of hours is directly related to the slow down of the manufacturing sector. Customers are going bankrupt or just not spending. |
| D.M., Office Admin (Windsor, ON) |
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