Automotive supplier closes Michigan plant

The seat maker is maintaining its plant in Lordstown.
SOUTHFIELD, Mich. (AP) -- Lear Corp. plans to close its Auburn Hills plant by mid-June, putting the factory's 305 hourly employees out of work, company officials said Friday.
The plant makes seats for the Buick LeSabre and Buick Park Avenue sedans, which are built at General Motors Corp.'s Orion Township plant in Oakland County.
The Southfield-based automotive supplier doesn't have the seating contract for the next vehicle to be assembled at Orion, the Pontiac G6 sedan, so it has no choice but to close its Auburn Hills plant, company officials said Friday.
Company spokesman Mel Stephens said the United Auto Workers union and Lear reached an agreement Tuesday about the future of the plant and its workers, but didn't elaborate.
The UAW contract at the Auburn Hills plant expired in May. Union officials declined comment.
Separately, the UAW and Lear reached an agreement Tuesday that would allow Lear's two Grand Rapids-area seating plants to stay open.
In the last couple of months, Lear and the UAW were involved in contract talks over whether the company would merge its Grand Rapids and Walker plants, which could have resulted in 400 job losses. The contract expired in May.
Both plants make seat parts for GM and other automakers.
Lordstown plant
Locally, Lear is maintaining its Lordstown plant even though it didn't win the contract to provide seats for the Chevrolet Cobalt, which is due out in October.
It has been providing seats to the General Motor complex in Lordstown for the Chevrolet Cavalier and Pontiac Sunfire.
The Lear plant now will make other interior parts, including headliners and door pads, and will employ 100. About 175 of its workers are transferring to Intier Automotive, which won the Cobalt seating contract.
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