General Motors announced at a press conference Monday that it will be investing $36 million into its Lansing Delta Township plant, a move that has people in the company excited.
"You know, we'll take what we can get because I know we build a great product here. If they're betting on us, they're betting in the right place," UAW Local 602 President Bill Reed said.
GM is putting more focus on SUVs and crossovers like the Chevy Traverse and Buick Enclave built at Delta because that's where the demand is.
"Because of this shift, we recently made difficult but necessary decisions to stop producing several passenger sedans and, unfortunately, un-allocate some plants to focus resources on the segments customers want," GM CEO Mary Barra said.
Those changes mean thousands of layoffs and multiple plants shutting down in Michigan and around the country. That's why the union is grateful GM is putting more money into Delta.
"You know, we're going into negotiations coming up this year. There's a lot of tension as far as fear of the unknown, you know? So any type of announcement that is being able to put monies back in the product, back into our plant, is good news," Reed said.
They hope the pain now will pay off later.
"I hope that we can get these employees back to work and get some permanent employment for some of our workers here. So it is great news. We have a long ways to go and we'll take what we can get," Reed added.
The company said that since its opening in 2009, they have invested more than $600 million into the Lansing Delta Township plant.
The Lansing Grand River plant is expecting to get a new vehicle this year after it stops production of Cadillac sedans. No word yet what that new vehicle will be.
