Ford Closing Down Russian Plant for a Month

The so-called "global economic crisis" has struck again, this time in Russia as Ford announced on Monday that it would halt production at its plant in Vsevolozhsk, near St. Petersburg, for almost a month, from December 24 until January 21. Under normal circumstances, the 2,200 workers that are employed at Ford's Russian factory would have taken a holiday break from January 1 to 10. Under the Russian Labor Code, Ford will have to pay its employees two-thirds of their normal wages during the close-down. According to Ford, the longer holidays will allow the company to finish preparations for the start of production of the new Mondeo scheduled for March 2009.