The following is a transcript of a speech given by Catherine Adam-Legg, Plant Manager of Johnson Controls LP in Milton, ON, from the Fall 2002 Breakfast with the Mayors event.

Breakfast with the Mayors
Halton Industry Education Council
November 28, 2002

Good morning ladies and gentlemen, distinguished guests. I am pleased to have this opportunity to address my community partners. Johnson Controls have been a proud member of the Milton community for 6 years. We employ 330 team members working on two shifts. We currently have 2 coop students and 2 apprentices. My discussion today will centre on the local actions of the Milton plant. Johnson Controls is a large corporation with strong support systems for skills development. However, what is important today is what impact we are having in our local community.

We are governed by strong core values. These values guide us in our daily operations and ensure that we maintain a balanced approach to all opportunities we encounter. We believe a solution that resolves a quality issue at the expense of safety is not a true solution. We believe that a solution that resolves a cost issue at the expense of on time delivery is not a true solution. There are five elements of balance-safety, quality, cost, delivery and team morale. We believe that to be successful all elements must be addressed equally.

Our customers are Ford Ontario Truck Plant and Toyota Cambridge Plant. Our product is complete vehicle seat and headliners. We are a JIT manufacturer and to give you an idea of our work environment-the products we are building at the plant this hour will be installed in vehicles before lunch today.

A resource shortage of any nature presents us with an intolerable situation.

Resource planning at our facility has an added dimension of complexity given that Ford OTP is scheduled to shutdown operations in mid year 2004. Although there is work in progress to secure additional business for our plant our known future demand for skills is likely to be less than our current demand. It is logical to conclude that, at this time, our partnership with the council is unnecessary.

Our plant leadership team found that there to be no better time for partnership. We realize that:

• Student tours of our facility create a sense of pride and community for our team. They provide youth with an understanding of repetitive manufacturing as a career choice.

• Apprenticeship programs provide growth opportunities for our team members.

• Short-term relief work assignments provide our team members with added help during peak workload/vacation intervals. We are always looking for creative ways to fulfill this type of demand.

• I challenge each business leader to consider that we, in business, are a significant demand engine for employment. We have the right expect that our education system will provide youth with the skills needed to sustain our business. We have the responsibility to work with the education system to establish curriculum that fulfills this need.

The Halton Industry Education Council and the Passport to Prosperity program allows us to reach out to education and to the community. I urge all attending this breakfast to reflect on their business’ ability to participate. This can be an investment of a few hours or a few weeks – it is your choice.

I believe a decision not to participate denies our educators the opportunity to endure the skills needed in our future workforces are incorporated into curriculum development and delivery.

Thank you.