'What do I do next?': Nemak employee unsure of next steps

Nemak forklift driver Erik Lascelle says he's not sure what he's going to do if the company shutters its west Windsor auto parts assembly plant next year.

The 36-year-old Lascelle lives in Windsor with his wife Celine and their three children. Hedescribed Nemak's intention to close its local assembly plant as a "backstabbing move."

"What do I do next?" he said. "After the plant closes, where do I go find a job? I have no idea."

Going back to school and pursuing a second career is an option, said Lascelle. So is moving out of Windsor.

Celine works as a travel nurse in Windsor, but she often needs to be away from her home and her family due to work.

After learning about the company's decision to cease production in Windsor in 2020, Celine said she had to start working 14 days in a row with a single day off to sustain her family's lifestyle and medical bills.

Now, 12- or 15-hour shifts that take her out of town are part of her every day life.

"It really affected our family dramatically," said Celine, adding that her children have had to deal with increased anxiety from being separated from their mother.

The oldest Lascelle child also lives with severe ADHD, panic attacks, as well as anxiety and severe PTSD from childhood trauma.

The family has been forced to stop buying his medication because they were unable to afford his bi-monthly $1,500 medical bills.

Lascelle, who is currently not workingas a result of an ongoing strike intended toforce Nemak to the bargaining table, said he hopes the provincial and federal government will take steps to help the almost 270 employees set to lose their jobs next year.

After the plant closes, where do I go to find a job?- Erik Lascelle, Nemak employee

"A company can't just take money and run away with it," he said. "If they're going to go, they have to pay that back or compensate it somewhere."

The Ontario Labour Relations Board (OLRB) issued a decision Wednesday ordering striking employees to cease picketing the Nemak plant.

A Windsor judge issued a decision Thursday ordering Unifor's top bosses to comply with the OLRB's previous order.

In response to the OLRB's decision, Unifor national president Jerry Diassaid the union wouldn't budge.

"In order to move our jobs to Mexico, [Nemak is] either going to sue us or they're going to throw me in jail," Dias said Wednesday.

Lascelle said he supports the strike action undertaken by Unifor, adding that Nemak needs to hold up a previously made promise to remain in Windsor until at least 2022.