Ford Pulling Jobs Out of Michigan, the Cannabis Industry Could Save Workers

Some Michigan autoworkers could soon be sent to the unemployment line. According to new report in USA Today, Ford is planning to move the production of its Focus and C-Max vehicles from its Michigan plant within the next few years and allow those operations to be conducted in Mexico.

News of this major decision comes on the heels of the company’s negotiations with the United Auto Workers, which got underway on Tuesday. Officials with the company say they understand employees being upset by the announcement, but they are “very confident” that the production of another vehicle could be sent in as a replacement.

"We will move production of the next-generation Ford Focus and C-MAX, which currently are built at Michigan Assembly Plant, beginning in 2018," the company said in a statement. "We actively are pursuing future vehicle alternatives to produce at Michigan Assembly and will discuss this issue with UAW leadership as part of the upcoming negotiations."

Unfortunately, American jobs have been being sent to countries like Mexico at an alarming rate over the years because it is better for a company's bottom line. Ford recently began building additional plants in Mexico, which makes some concerned over Ford’s statement about a replacement product -- why would the automaker continue to manufacture in the U.S. when they are investing in production in Mexico?

It is for this reason that new industries must be developed in order to salvage what is left of the economic downtrodden holding on across the state, as well as open up new opportunities that will allow the market to flourish.

If Michigan legalizes a recreational market in 2016, this new industry could begin to fill the gaps created by the instability of auto production. Not only is the cannabis industry generating millions of dollars in states where it has been made legal, but it is also responsible for creating thousands of new, good-paying jobs that have become a welcomed benefit for many communities.

Marijuana is the one industry that pulls jobs out of Mexico and gives them to American workers.