MONTREAL -- Bombardier may be abandoning its commercial airline division but its replacement wants to reassure Quebec workers that job cuts aren’t coming.
The Quebec-based aerospace giant announced on Thursday that it will sell its remaining stake in the A220 jetliner program to Airbus for $591 million. The Quebec government will maintain a 25 per cent ownership stake in the partnership.
Under the deal 360 jobs will be transferred to Mirabel from St-Laurent in three years.
While the jobs will stay in Quebec, St-Laurent city councillor Aref Salem said there are still concerns over the future of the plant. He said the number workers at the plan have been reduced over the years.
The machinists’ union said the plant’s future relies on what Bombardier chooses to do with its business jets. The plant currently employs around 2,000 people.
Salem said the borough hopes to have an open dialogue with Bombardier and the province over the plant’s future.
“We mandated the economic development services in the borough to make sure… we see what’s the plan, what’s the future of this facility,” he said. “We’ll be there if they need any help to keep this facility running.”
