Oregon: Daimler Truck North America Closes Swan Island Plant in Portland on Oct. 30; 387 Jobs Affected, Headquarters Stays
Portland, Multnomah County, Oregon — Daimler Truck North America closed its truck manufacturing plant on Swan Island on Oct. 30, ending Freightliner's history of building complete trucks in Portland, which began in 1947.
The Swan Island plant, at 6936 North Fathom Street, opened in 1969 and was Freightliner's third plant in Portland. The company said production of the Western Star X-Series and the Freightliner eCascadia and eM2 electric trucks will move to plants in North Carolina and South Carolina to optimize its production network. The company put the number of affected jobs at about 375, while the Oregon labor department's WARN notice showed 387 layoffs, of whom 343 are union-represented employees and the rest non-union office staff. The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers has been negotiating severance and benefits with the company.
Daimler Truck North America stressed that Portland will remain its North American headquarters and engineering base, with engineering, testing and technology operations staying in the city. For Portland manufacturing, the closure marks the end of an era for a landmark plant, and placement and transfers for affected workers will be the next focus.
Source: GSM·America
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：波特兰市政厅外景（俄勒冈州）。图片来源：Wikimedia Commons（CC BY-SA 3.0），GSM固定图库。 / Photo: Portland City Hall, Oregon, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0), GSM fixed library.
