At the end of this line, ‘it’s mostly about the people’

By Alex Gary

BusinessRockford.com

The final day of work for nearly one-third of the work force at the Chrysler assembly plant went off without much of a hitch, at least by late Friday afternoon.

The last third shift checked out at 7 a.m. Friday; a Chrysler spokesman mistakenly told the Register Star the last third shift would end today. While that shift is the one being eliminated, the vast majority of the people losing their jobs actually were on the

Coming Sunday

Chrysler began hiring people for the third shift at its Belvidere assembly plant in spring 2006. Now, about 1,100 people are out of work. Meet LaShunda Iverson, Chris Johnson and Michael McNulty, whose working lives have been changed by the elimination of the third shift. We’ll also look at how the layoff affects other businesses in the area, how people are faring since a job fair in January, and recap the plant’s highlights and lowlights since 2005.

second shift, which will get off at 11 p.m.

On Wednesday, the company had asked area police departments for extra security because of rumors of violence and sabotage of some vehicles on the line by disgruntled workers. The beefed-up police presence was in place Friday as well.

Restaurants and taverns near the plant or on one of several popular routes home for Chrysler workers reported a few going-away parties. Shortly after 3 p.m. Friday, first-shift Chrysler workers started pouring into the Backstop Bar & Grill, 1830 Union Ave., Belvidere. More than 50 people gathered to drink, swap stories and shoot pool.

Ernie Hanvy, 56, of Machesney Park laughed with other retirees. His last day of work after 35 years was Friday. He accepted a buyout retirement package.

“The way things are going, I thought right now was as good a time as any to get out,” he said.

Hanvy said he can’t blame second-shift workers for being upset about losing their jobs, but they knew in the beginning that the positions were temporary.

“But nobody wants to lose their job,” Hanvy said. “We’ve seen good times and bad times. In the end, it’s mostly about the people.”

The Belvidere plant opened in 1965 and has mostly been a two-shift plant where workers have put together cars ranging from the muscle car Plymouth Fury to the economical Dodge Omni to the sleek Chrysler New Yorker.

In 2006, though, the company launched a trio of vehicles — the Dodge Caliber, Jeep Compass and Jeep Patriot. In May that year, the company re-established a second shift that had been shut down in 2001, then brought in transfers from other Chrysler plants and hired 800 workers on two-year temporary contracts to boost the payroll enough to launch a third shift that July.

Caliber, Compass and Patriot sales have been an improvement on the old Dodge Neon made at the plant, but they haven’t sold at the level three shifts of workers were producing them. Money-losing Chrysler announced in November that it would convert the plant back to a two-shift operation.

Workers in Belvidere aren’t alone; the company is eliminating third shifts at all plants that had them.

Assistant Business Editor Alex Gary may be reached at agary@rrstar.com or 815-987-1339.

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