Ford's Edison Plant to Close

The Ford Motor, plant in Edison will close its doors for good on February 27, eliminating 900 jobs. The facility, built in 1948, currently manufactures the Ranger pickup and Mazda B-series trucks. Back in December of 2001, the company announced the elimination of its second shift, cutting the workforce

The closings are part of a United Auto Workers union contract, which Ford signed in early October. The company plans to cut North American capacity by one million vehicles and shed an estimated 12,000 hourly jobs.

Stiff competition, marked by hefty cash rebates for trucks averaging $3,700 per vehicle sold in the U.S., offered by all three major automobile manufacturers in the U.S., is a major reason for the cost-cutting measures.

The fate of the General Motors Linden plant, just a few miles north of the Ford plant on Route 1&9, has received a slight reprieve on its sentence. The decision on its closing or continued operation has been extended until 2007, as opposed to 2004.