Windsor council unanimously backs Syncreon staff fight for E.I.

Windsor city council voted unanimously Tuesday to ask the Federal Government to keep employment insurance (EI) benefits in place for 297 employees at Syncreon Automotive.

From COVID-19 shutdowns to supply chain interruptions caused by the Ambassador Bridge blockade, most, if not all, of the employees have come to rely on EI.

At the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Canadian government made accessing the program easier for those off work for pandemic-related reasons.

The rules will revert on Sept. 25, leaving those Syncreon employees without access — little more than a month before the plant closes for good.

“This motion is all about calling on the federal government to provide some sensibility,” Windsor mayoral candidate Drew Dilkens said at Tuesday’s meeting. “And someone to actually review what’s actually going on here with this particular employer and this particular situation [impacting] families in our community area.”

After some discussion as to what authority the municipality has on the matter of the employment insurance program, the motion passed.

Council will now send a letter to Ottawa asking for consideration of the situation at Syncreon.

The union representing the employees calls the outcome encouraging, saying every bit helps.

“We've been laid off for 66 weeks and two and a half years,” says Robert Kennedy, second vice president with UNIFOR Local 195. “That's just you know, it's unheard of. It's just like COVID. Something we've never dealt with before.”

Kennedy said he sent an email to the office of Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland Tuesday afternoon and that the union has been reaching out to anyone they can.

He doesn’t see why the pandemic-era exceptions can’t be extended beyond Sept. 25.

“It's just a date that could be moved around,” said Kennedy. “Take a good look right now what's happening and take a look at the families affected by this date. And, you know, it can have a huge impact. You're talking about severance monies that could pay off bills for the past two and a half years.”