Ford, GM, Stellantis reinstate mask mandate at some Michigan facilities: Report

Three major auto manufacturers in the US, Ford, General Motors and Stellantis on Sunday have said that they are reinstating the mandate for their employees to wear masks at some of their Michigan factories amid the rising number of Covid-19 cases, reports Reuters. The three Detroit auto giants had said in early March this year that they would allow auto workers to stop wearing masks at workplaces while the US health officials said it was safe to do so.

Now, as the Covid-19 cases are rising again in multiple states, the automakers have restarted taking preventive measures to curb the spread of the virus among their employees. The report says that Ford has said that it was temporarily reinstating a face mask requirement at all of its plants located in areas deemed high-risk because of the Coronavirus.

Stellantis said that the auto company has issued that face masks will again be required for employees, contractors and visitors at all Stellantis facilities in the Michigan counties. The company also added that it is expected that the requirement will be in place for the next two weeks. The mandate is effective from Monday.

General Motors on the other hand said it will be implementing Covid protection measures at its facilities in Oakland, Wayne, Livingston and Macomb counties as these places have been listed as high-risk zones.

The United Auto Workers (UAW) union said on Sunday that if a facility is located in high-risk counties as identified by the CDC, they will require masking and physical distancing.

Ford and General Motors both have their headquarters in Wayne County, while Stellantis' North American headquarters is in Oakland County. Apart from that, all these three auto giants have numerous manufacturing facilities in southeastern Michigan.