Randall St JacquesSeptember 22, 2009 22:19 EST

Great peace of literature! I know my grandfather, one of the many who walked out of Chrysler with George Burt in 1940, is spinning in his grave.These guys had guts! The company had persuaded the government to declare the Windsor Assembly passenger car plant necessary for the war effort, thus relieving the company of the necessity to bargain at all for a contract.They struck anyway and were led out the gates into paddywagons.It's a great story, one almost forgotten. The spirit and intestinal fortitude displayed by the Chrysler workers spread to Ford and GM. Those qualities aren't dead; they're just dormant and can be re-awakened. It's up to the rank and file to provide the leaders who are up to the job. Strength flows from within! Walrus gets my 3 bucks just for "Requiem for a Union Town". However, I believe recuperation is possible.

Tracey RamseySeptember 24, 2009 10:45 EST

Lots of great information, but the perception that Windsor's days are over is not accurate. We are transitioning, true, but there are still many good people living good lives in Windsor/Essex County. There are many educated auto workers who are now returning to their previous careers, as nurses, lawyers, engineers, and many others who are headed to school for the first time.
The College & University are at maximum enrollment. With 65% mature students at the college alone, the governments Second Career Program is alive and well and finally making good use of the EI surplus we've all paid into.
The reason educated people have maintained these "blue collar" jobs is the LIFEstyle it has afforded them, life being the operative word, not WORK. Being defined by your LIFE and not your WORK is the reason we are all here on this third rock from the sun.

As a Ford Employee currently in talks to give concessions, we are hoping to make the deals that have been established in the past to secure a manufacturing footprint in Canada, that existed until the government removed the Auto Pact. I am also now a full time student at the college, planning for an alternative future if I never return to automotive.
The slow death of manufacturing in Canada is a never ending battle, and unless we pressure politicians to stand up for Canadians, we will only continue to see other manufacturing sectors suffer the way Windsor has.
We are now in a race to the bottom, by making concessions, but it is not the first time and won't be the last that we have made them to secure a future in Canada.

Scott PattisonSeptember 24, 2009 12:46 EST

As a proud Windsorite, I too, am grateful for the standard of living that the CAW and the Chryslers afforded my family.

To park a Honda or a Toyota in the driveway of a parent employed by the Big 3, was a mistake not soon forgotten, as I foolishly learned.

And although my career has taken me west, my community, Windsor, with all of its economic might and weakness, has forever left its mark on my character.

Through downturns and times of prosperity, Windsorites have always prevailed, their collective resilience unparalleled across the Canadian landscape.

No-one rides the rollercoaster like those in Motor City-North. You know what I mean!

FTR, a Dodge is still parked in my driveway, and a bottle of Heinz Ketchup in the fridge!

dig the online treasureNovember 06, 2009 01:45 EST

I am also grateful for a given standard of living of my family. I do not mistake forget is when the car broke the rear view mirror jazz. thanks for sharing information, experiences very interesting.

G-raidDecember 10, 2009 14:02 EST

Sure makes you think if unions are necessary and if there are ways that we can improve them.