Ross Seeley
Deborah Baic /The Globe and Mail
Slideshow
Shutdown: Faces of London's EMD factory closing
Six former employees of Caterpillar's Electro-Motive Canada plant have shared their stories of displacement in the manufacturing sector. The Globe and Mail will follow them (and others in the community) in the aftermath of the plant's closure, and over the course of the year as they search for work elsewhere, move or retrain in another career.
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Sarah Smith and Vince Gugliotta
In his words: “It doesn't matter what you make, even if it's minimum wage. If we were to take that proposal the company offered, what's going to happen to $16-an-hour jobs? Will they have to go to minimum wage? I don't want to see lost jobs, neither does the community, businesses and the local government. But I'm frustrated over it and in shock. And you know what? I don't want that corporation in our country.”
In her words: “I'm trying to plan for the future, but because of the situation we're in, I'm very leery about making the wrong decision...I don't know what's going to happen tomorrow. But I will not ever go back to the factory after this.”
Vince Gugliotta and Sarah Smith
Age:
Vince is 35 and Sarah is 29Job:
AssemblersYears at locomotive plant:
6.5
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Ralf Zapke
In his words: “I know the Canadian government can't force companies to stay in Canada ... but there should be some sort of protection for the workforce. This only took a year and a half and they're closing the doors on us. Who's next? It could be any other company ... we're losing the middle class income, and the middle class are the ones that feed the economy.”
Ralf Zapke
Age:
49Job:
Welder/overhead crane operatorYears at locomotive plant:
18
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— Deborah Baic/The Globe and Mail
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Kelly Gordon
In her words: “My daughter's been on edge...she's been stressed out this whole time. She's supposed to be going to Fanshaw [College] in September and I really hope this doesn't affect her grades too badly. ... Her birthday's coming up in a few weeks, which makes it even harder because I had big plans for her. She's going to be 19, and now ... I have no idea what to do because financially I can't afford to do anything really for her.”
Kelly Gordon
Age:
40Job:
WelderYears at locomotive plant:
6.5
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Ross Seeley
In his words: It's hard to take. This place has been here for 62 years making locomotives and I used to be one of the proudest guys to tell you what I did for a living ... now, there's no jobs out there. Southwestern Ontario has just been decimated in manufacturing and that's the only kind of job I've ever done.
“I may have to go out West, or maybe up North to the mines. I really don't know who's going to hire me at 53 years old. It wouldn't be my first choice – I was hoping to retire here in London.”
Ross Seeley
Age:
53Job:
PipefitterYears at locomotive plant:
29.5
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Ted Radaczynski
In his words: “My mom was in Canada for a year [in the 1960s] ... and she would always send packages from Canada, clothes and shoes and dolls. Poland wasn't a rich country at that time at all. But as a kid, I remember getting those Canadian-made winter boots with a beautiful lining, and I remember wearing them with pride because they were so good ... since then I always wanted to immigrate here.
“I was retrained once when I was on layoff. I got a certificate as a gas technician, but when I tried to get into that field, it was closed doors everywhere. They want you if you already have experience ... when I think what I can do now – it's not much.”
Ted Radaczynski
Age:
52Job:
MachinistYears at locomotive plant:
almost five
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