Durbin Calls On Stellantis To Uphold Its End Of The Deal To Reopen Belvidere Plant

Durbin Calls On Stellantis To Uphold Its End Of The Deal To Reopen Belvidere Plant

SPRINGFIELD - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today released the following statement ahead of United Auto Workers (UAW) President Shawn Fain's visit to Belvidere, Illinois, and as UAW calls on Stellantis to uphold its end of the deal to restart the Belvidere Assembly Plant and add on an electric vehicle battery plant to the facility:

"Last year, the Belvidere Assembly Plant was idled and more than 1,000 people were out of work. But thanks to direct investment from the Biden-Harris administration and advocacy from Shawn Fain and the UAW, Belvidere is on a path to recovery with a deal for 3,000 union workers to clock in at a brand new motor parts distribution center and battery factory. Now, it is up to Stellantis to live up to its end of the deal. I will continue to fight for the federal resources needed to properly invest in the electric vehicle industry, as well as for the working class."

As part of the deal with UAW struck last year, Stellantis will invest nearly $4.8 billion in the area, retooling the auto plant to produce a midsize truck, establish a parts distribution center, and construct a new electric vehicle battery plant. The plant is expected to create 1,300 jobs and launch in 2028. Employees at the plant will also see a 25 percent increase in base wages.

In February 2023, Stellantis laid off 1,350 workers at the idled Belvidere Plant. Durbin has continuously shown his support for the laid off or striking autoworkers, joining picket lines at General Motors in Bolingbrook, Illinois, and at the Ford Assembly Plant in Chicago. In September 2023, Durbin took to the Senate floor to urge Stellantis to reconsider the closure of the Belvidere plant, while reminding executives from the Big Three Automakers - General Motors, Ford, and Stellantis - that autoworkers deserve better wages as the companies collectively reaped more than $250 billion in profits between 2013 and 2022.

In July 2023, Durbin led a letter alongside Senator Brown to General Motors, Ford, and Stellantis calling for a good faith negotiation with striking autoworkers. In the letter, Durbin reiterated that Stellantis should never have closed the Belvidere Assembly Plant and urged Stellantis executives to swiftly reopen the plant.

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