WARREN, Mich. – General Motors said Friday that it will invest $325 million in its Warren, Mich., transmission factory, which the automaker said would create or save 418 jobs.
The plant will get equipment to build transmission parts for future electric vehicles, the company said in a statement.
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The timing of the investment and the exact components that the plant will build were not disclosed.
"We want to provide customers around the world with the technologies that will reduce their fuel consumption and help them save money. And we want to do it right here, at Warren Transmission operations with all of you good people," said Gerald Johnson of General Motors manufacturing.
The company would not say how many of the 418 jobs will be new positions. But a summary of GM's new four-year contract with the United Auto Workers union says 360 jobs will be added at the plant for a new transmission that originally was to be built in Mexico. The union said that the jobs were brought to the U.S. as part of the new contract.
According to Macomb Executive Mark Hackel, "GM now means not going to Mexico, It means growing Macomb, growing Michigan."
The Warren factory now makes transmissions for GM's large crossover SUVs, the Chevrolet Traverse, Buick Enclave and GMC Acadia, as well as the Chevrolet Malibu midsize sedan. It currently employs 679 workers.
GM builds the Chevrolet Volt and Opel Ampera electric cars at Detroit factory that's close to the Warren transmission plant. It also announced earlier in the week that it plans to build an all-electric Chevrolet Spark mini car for sale in selected U.S. and global markets starting in 2013. A gasoline-powered Spark will be sold in the U.S. and Canada starting next year.
"We have been on pins and needles worrying about what's going to happen. So this happened and this means 400 people will get a job, including my son probably, and I'm grateful, I'm happy," said Gerald Hughes of UAW Local 909.
"I am so glad that we are getting this work because there's a ot of people out there who need jobs and we're all for it," said Aretha Lee of UAW Local 909.
"That means I don't have to drive somewhere else. It means security, some cushion for a while anyway," said Lisa Sled of UAW Local 909.