WASHINGTON D.C. -- Ohio senators Rob Portman and Sherrod Brown will meet with General Motors CEO Mary Barra this week in attempt to save the company's Lordstown plant.
The trio will meet Wednesday afternoon at Portman's Washington D.C. office, according to a news release issued by the U.S. Senate.
Last week, GM announced plans to cease operations at the Lordstown location, where 1,500 employees produce the Chevrolet Cruze.
Portman and Brown have already proposed to solutions to Barra in effort to save the plant.
“If you love this country, you fight for the people who make it work – people like the workers at Lordstown. Senator Portman and I are committed to saving these jobs and call on GM to work with us to find solutions,” Brown said in Monday's news release. “Ohio has stood by GM. Now GM needs to stand by Ohio, and the workers who make their company successful.”
Portman added, “We have the best workers in the world in Ohio, and I’m proud of the workers at Lordstown. They have proven themselves time and again, and Senator Brown and I will continue to fight on their behalf. I look forward to continuing our engagement with GM. I hope the company sees the incredible potential in this plant, by keeping it open and bringing other production back to the Valley.”
Ohio's incoming governor, Republican Mike DeWine, says he also plans on meeting with GM officials after he takes office in January.
The once-bustling factory already has lost two of its three shifts and 3,000 union jobs since last year.