WINDSOR, ONT. -- When the time comes for employees at Ford’s Windsor Engine Plant to return to work, they can expect a no-touch temperature check before entering the building.
While there is no exact back to work date set for many employees, Ford released its global health and safety protocols Thursday for a safe restart.
“The playbook is extensive and so there’s going to be a learning curve when they first come in to work,” said John D'Agnolo, Unifor Local 200 president.
New measures include no-touch temperature scans upon arrival, required face masks, hand sanitize stations throughout the buildings and a “comprehensive playbook” with company procedures and protocols.
Ford planned to have nearly 200 skilled trades and production employees back to work on April 27, but plans changed after Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer and Ohio officials extended the closure so plant remained closed.
The latest precautions expand on those used in Ford’s China facilities where work has resumed and is now manufacturing medical equipment, the company said in a news release.
The Windsor Engine Plant also switched gears in April and repurposed part of the plant to make face shields for local healthcare workers as the demand increased due to COVID-19.
Those building medical supplies have stayed safe by wearing face masks and other personal protective equipment while maintaining at least two meters of space from others, Ford stated.
“They're going to clean their work station, they're going to start their work and every time they leave, they come back, they make sure their work station is cleaned,” D’Agnolo said of the processes for Windsor employees when they eventually head back to work. “Anybody that has to replace them, for example, will go to the station, they'll make sure that they wash their hands and then clean the workstation before they start.”
Ford announced plans to restart manufacturing in Europe on May 4, and said a small number of employees have returned to work in North America this week to begin installing equipment and putting in place the new safety protocols.
