Back in early January, Ford executed a rather shocking move by terminating its contract with the transport company Jack Cooper, with which it had previously enjoyed a relationship with for roughly 40 years. It’s unclear why Ford made this particular decision, as it doesn’t comment on contracts or relationships with individual suppliers, but it wound up creating what the transport company called an “existential crisis” that prompted it to close some of its locations and lay off dozens of workers. Now, Jack Cooper has lost its biggest customer and Ford’s cross-town rival, too.
According to GM Authority, shortly after General Motors ordered Jack Cooper to suddenly stop shipping its vehicles – even unloading some Corvettes that had just been put on trailers at the Bowling Green Assembly plant – the automaker has officially ended its relationship with that company, just like Ford. In GM’s case, the move comes after the two sides failed to reach an agreement on a new contract, a topic that came up as Jack Cooper was attempting to compensate for its lost business with Ford. Apparently, that decision backfired in spectacular fashion.
“We can confirm that Jack Cooper Transport management has informed us of their plans to unilaterally stop services to GM, effective immediately,”said GM spokesman Kevin Kelly. “In light of this material breach of their agreement and the ongoing and timely needs of GM’s business, we have no choice but to implement contingency plans with other providers. We do not anticipate any further disruptions to the delivery of our vehicles. We are helping identify positions at other businesses for impacted [Jack Cooper] employees, and we believe that a significant portion will be successfully transferred.”
Some are speculating that this could spell the end for Jack Cooper and its 2,500 employees, as it was already in full-blown crisis mode following Ford’s sudden decision to end its relationship with the company last month. As Ford Authority recently reported, a pair of U.S. Senators wrote a letter to Ford CEO Jim Farley demanding an explanation for the automaker’s decision to terminate its contract with Jack Cooper, though now, it isn’t alone in abandoning that relationship.
Comments
I’ve checked in vehicles off the truck from 1976 through 2019. Always enjoyed conversations with Jack Cooper drivers. It’s a tough job.
Because of GREED the little guy is stabbed in the back again. When will we ever learn?
Where do the comments appear? My last one went to never land.