GM and Ford to close all North American plants through end of month

General Motors and Ford announced Wednesday that they would suspend all production at their North American facilities until the end of the month, saying the move was necessary to protect employees from contracting the coronavirus. Fiat-Chrysler was expected to make a similar announcement.

The announcement came less than a day after the companies announced, along with the United Auto Workers, that they would engage in rotating shutdowns of their plants to limit workers' exposure to the virus. However, shortly after that announcement, news broke that a worker at the Sterling, Michigan, Fiat-Chrysler plant had become sick, prompting the groups to rethink the strategy, according to an official with knowledge of the talks. The source said that Fiat-Chrysler was expected to also close its plants, but it had not made a statement early Wednesday afternoon.

GM said Wednesday that it would close its plants because "due to market conditions," a "systematic, orderly suspension" of production was the safest route, and it would use the time to deep-clean the plants. "We have been taking extraordinary precautions around the world to keep our plant environments safe, and recent developments in North America make it clear this is the right thing to do now," said GM President Mary Barra.

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