Tentative contract agreement between GM, UAW means Janesville plant moving off standby status

JANESVILLE — A tentative contract agreement between General Motors and United Auto Workers ends any hope GM might once again use its idled Janesville plant.

The plant once employed 7,000 automakers during its peak in the 1970s. The 4.8 million-square-foot plant has been closed since 2009, but placed on "standby" status under the old contract in the event GM would need the production space again.

The Janesville Gazette reports UAW representatives say the new contract agreement moves the plant from "standby" status to "closed."

Hundreds of UAW Local 95 members who once worked at the plant have taken jobs at other GM plants. John Dohner now works at a GM plant in Fort Wayne, Indiana, but travels home to Janesville on weekends. Dohner says he still had hope the Janesville plant would someday reopen.