Ford to cut 450 jobs at Canada plant on Flex

Ford Motor Co will cut about 450 jobs at its Oakville assembly plant in Ontario, as the No. 2 U.S. carmaker discontinues production of the Ford Flex and Lincoln MKT, Canada's largest private-sector union Unifor said on Monday.

Ford's move to stop production of the crossovers comes as the company is expanding its truck and utility lineup and shedding passenger cars, except for its iconic Mustang sports car.

"We will stop building the Ford Flex at the end of November. Lincoln MKT production ended earlier this month," said Kelli Felker, manufacturing & labor communications manager at Ford.

The company employs about 4,100 hourly workers at the Oakville plant.

Negotiations between Unifor and Ford for a new collective agreement are scheduled to take place in 2020, the union said.

"Hopefully we get some kind of announcement that Ford is going to invest some new money into Oakville and at least there's a light at the end of the tunnel," said Dave Thomas, president of Unifor Local 707 in Oakville.