Rock River Current
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BELVIDERE — Stellantis said today that nearly 165 employees who were laid off when the Belvidere Assembly Plant was idled in February returned to full-time jobs this week.
The employees will support operations for Mopar, the company’s parts and service division, at a warehouse near the plant, Stellantis said Thursday in a news release.
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There are about 115 workers already processing parts for distribution to dealers. The rest will complete training at the Chicago Parts Distribution Center in Naperville before transitioning to Belvidere next week.
“It has always been our goal to find full-time employment opportunities for the Belvidere workforce,” Mark Stewart, Stellantis North America chief operating officer, said in a news release. “This is a great first step in our plans to restore operations in this community and provide meaningful, high paying jobs with excellent benefits for those who are still on layoff and, eventually, for many who want to return home.”
There were roughly 1,200 workers laid off when the assembly plant was idled at the end of February. In late October, Stellantis and the United Auto Workers reached a deal during contract negotiations to launch a new electric vehicle battery plant, establish a Mopar Mega Hub and resume production at the plant of a midsized pickup truck, all in Belvidere. It’s expected to be a roughly $5 billion investment in Belvidere and was aided with state and federal tax incentives, including $400 million “closing fund” that Illinois offered to support the buildout.
The company and the union also agreed to eliminate the wage tier between Mopar employees and their assembly plant counterparts, which is intended to make the transition from a position in a manufacturing facility to one in a parts distribution center seamless.
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The parts distribution center is the first step to restarting work in Belvidere. Production of the yet-to-be-announced midsized truck truck could begin in 2027 with the battery plant launching in 2028. Combined those facilities would employ about 3,000.