Navistar names first female plant manager at Chatham

CHATHAM, Ont. (Feb. 10) — Although Ann Hennigan says gender is not an issue, it does make a good news hook.

Hennigan, a 20-year veteran of Navistar International, will head the company’s truck assembly facility at Chatham, Ont., the first woman to do so. The plant, which produces premium conventional heavy-duty trucks and employs 2500, celebrated its 50th anniversary last year.

Hennigan previously was manager of Navistar’s body plant in Springfield, Ohio. She joined the company in 1979 as a management trainee and has held various positions in truck manufacturing operations, including quality manager, manager of manufacturing operations, and director of Navistar’s customer responsiveness centre.

The Chatham plant is a workhorse for Chicago-based Navistar, currently building 119 heavy-duty trucks each day. In 1997, the plant turned out more than 20,000 vehicles, more than half of Navistar’s total heavy-truck output.

Navistar and unionized hourly workers at the plant are currently in negotiations on a new master labor contract. The employees are represented by the Canadian Auto Workers; Navistar’s existing three-year wage contract with the CAW expires later this year.