Anna Marie Arpino of Shreveport, LA

Anna Marie has lived in Shreveport, LA for more than 40-years. While she currently works as an accountant, more than 20 of her family members live in Detroit or the Gross Pointe, Michigan area and either work for or have retired from the auto industry. Her father worked for 48-years in the Detroit auto industry before moving down to Shreveport, so Anna knows firsthand the challenges autoworkers are facing in the current economic climate.

While many of her family members have a strong work ethic, the fact that they have consistently produced quality products has not saved them from an uncertain future. And while Anna says her family is loyal and dedicated to the auto industry, the reverse has not always been true.

When asked if there hope for a turnaround in the economic survival of the auto industry, Anna Marie just says simply, “All we’ve got is hope.”

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Amanda Meier in Ft. Wayne, IN

Amanda Meiers is a fourth generation auto worker who recently lost her job at a General Motors assembly plant.

But refuses to give up on the auto industry and says that she will work hard in her union to ensure a better future. Watch her story.

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Ben Lilienfield of Baytown, TX

Ben Lilienfield, 36, of Baytown, TX, is a married father of an eight year old boy. Lilienfield, who was the MC at the Little Rock, AR, “Keep it Made in America” rally, says that everything he does he is doing for his son’s future.

A member of the United Steel Workers for 15 years, Lilienfield is currently the Rapid Response Coordinator for USW District 13. While his role is to help educate USW’s membership about upcoming legislation that would help steel workers and the auto industry, Ben also tries to mobilize the membership into actions such as letter writing campaigns and attending rallies.

But because of the dire economic conditions and the difficulty people are having trying to find a job, Ben says that it has been harder to find and retain activists.

People are no longer calling him up to say “Hey, what can I do to help?” or “What can I do to help keep jobs in America?” Instead, Ben is hearing over and over, “Do you know anything about jobs? Where can I find a job?”

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Erwin Porter of New Madrid, MO

Erwin Porter has worked at Noranda Aluminum in New Madrid, MO, for 33-years as a steel worker. He thought he would be there forever.

The company makes aluminum from raw materials and while there are 800 people, most employees who work with him are on an hourly rate.

Noranda plant supplied aluminum for the auto industry and while management has threatened lay-offs for quite some time, nothing had happened. But then an unexpected thing happened: an ice storm shut down the plant and is power, interrupting its production.

When power was restored, the plant resumed only 25 percent of its output capacity. Because the economy is so bad and the price of aluminum so low, it is not certain if Noranda will be back to 100 percent any time soon. And that means trouble.

Today, even with 33 years seniority, Erwin has no sense of job security. Unless the demand for aluminum gets stronger, everything is up in the air.

While Erwin doesn’t know what he will do if his plan were to shut down, he is taking precautions. He’s altered his lifestyle and become more conscious of his spending.

And while he may be frustrated at the plant’s management, his company did allow him and several of his co-workers to come to the Cape Girardeau whistle stop for the Keep it Made in America Tour and not lose any pay. And for that he is grateful.

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Mary Secor in Bay City, Michigan

Mary Secor does not work in the auto industry, but she came to the Bay City, Michigan rally to support the auto workers here.

Mary worked as an injury prevention technician at a local hospital until December 2008, when the grant money that funded her position dried up and she was let go. She sees her lost job as a victim of the manufacturing jobs losses happening around the country.

And while Mary is thankful that her husband still has a job as a firefighter, he could be next. Though he’s been working in Bay City for more than 20 years, Mary says that if the local Powertrain plant fails, his job could be on the chopping block next.

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