Magna to close exterior plastic plants, cut 850 jobs

Aurora, Ont.-based automotive parts supplier Magna International has announced that it will close two plants in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) for the company’s Exterion division.

The Exterion division is a part of Magna’s Decoma International, and manufactures exterior painted plastic parts such as fascias, fenders, body panels, grilles, rocker panels and decorative trim, primarily for North American OEMs.

Work from the two facilities in Aurora and Newmarket will be transferred over to other sites in June. Additionally, the company said that it would provide severance packages based on years of experience, and try to place the plants’ employees at other Decoma facilities.

The company decided to close the two Exterion facilities after evaluating its current status and outlook.

“Those factors, combined with the difficult economic conditions facing the North American auto industry due to reduced domestic production and customer demands, have made the Exterion operations no longer viable,” the company explained in its statement abotu the plant closures.