Since before she started touting her backwards agenda that would wreck Michigan’s economy, DeVos sellout Tudor Dixon did her part directly, running businesses that undercut American goods and subjected workers to bounced paychecks and unsafe conditions.
Dixon Ran a “Dirty,” “Nasty” Steel Foundry That Maintained an Unsafe Work Environment, Couldn’t Make Payroll, and Didn’t Pay Vendors
Dixon has frequently pointed to her experience as an executive leading sales and human resources at Muskegon steel foundry Michigan Steel for years before the company laid off its entire 300-employee workforce and was completely liquidated by 2013. In her own accounts on the campaign trail, Dixon established herself as a company executive with a hand in “every aspect” of Michigan Steel’s day-to-day operations.
Despite Dixon’s claims that she ensured safety was a priority, reporting from Bridge Michigan details how the foundry regularly cut corners under her leadership, creating a “friggin’ dangerous” workplace environment that resulted in serious injuries for employees as they handled heavy equipment and molten metals.
Dixon’s failed leadership resulted in Michigan Steel earning a reputation as a “half-assed” business that routinely couldn’t make payroll.
Due to Dixon’s shoddy leadership, “dozens” of employees – from hourly production workers, all the way up to the CEO – were forced to file wage complaints against Michigan Steel after a string of bounced checks and missed paydays. The foundry was sacked with an untold dollar amount of fines for “repeatedly” violating basic wage laws.
Michigan Steel also “struggled to pay bills” and was known for failing to pay vendors, bouncing checks, getting sacked with tax liens, refusing to pay utility bills to the point that even trash pickup got suspended, having foundry property “seized by court officers,” and “maintaining its own operations by using ‘other companies’ money.’”
Dixon’s Other Company Outsourced Goods From Overseas at the Expense of American Manufacturers
After she set Michigan Steel on a path to ruin, Tudor Dixon founded Cornerstone Foundry Supply (CFS) to sell parts to foundries such as ceramic materials and molds. Rather than source these goods from American manufacturers, CFS “exclusively operated” as a distributor of Czech Republic-made ceramic molds, then partnered with an Italian manufacturer to do the same.
Despite the fact that the United States “is the largest global exporter” of refractory ceramics, Dixon hid behind a campaign spokesperson to argue that American manufacturers weren’t up to the job.
Tudor Dixon Opposes Bipartisan Job Creation Efforts That Brought $4 Billion in Investments and Nearly 4,000 Jobs to Michigan in a Single Week
Tudor Dixon’s disregard for the auto industry has been evident to working families since she launched her bid for governor. She is staunchly opposed to the Strategic Outreach and Attraction Reserve, a fund which has proven “critical to strengthening the state’s economic foundation.”
Thanks to Governor Whitmer working with the Republican-controlled legislature to create SOAR, Michigan was able to secure not one but two billion-dollar investments from Our Next Energy Inc. and Gotion Inc.
Further solidifying Michigan’s as an auto industry leader not only in the past but as it evolves into the future of electric vehicles, this duo of “undeniable wins” totals “nearly $4 billion” and creates “close to 4,500 jobs” across Wayne County and Big Rapids with average hourly wages ranging from $30 to $35.
Before the Gotion deal was even finalized, Dixon demonstrated to Michiganders that nothing can spur her to put her kneejerk hyperpartisanship aside as she railed against the battery manufacturer and the jobs it would bring to Big Rapids in full force.
Similarly, Dixon was dismissive of GM’s $7 billion dollar investment in “making Michigan the ‘hub’ of electric vehicle development and manufacturing.” Dixon supporter and Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey even praised the deal as a “historic” job-creator, as GM is expected to bring 4,000 new good-paying positions to Michigan.
Dixon Cheered on the Ambassador Bridge Blockade, Panned GM’s 4,000 Job-Creating, $7 Billion Dollar Investment in Michigan, and is Now Railing Against Even More Job Creation
Tudor Dixon’s disregard for the auto industry has been evident to working families since she launched her bid for governor.
As “major international gateway” Ambassador Bridge was shut down due to an illegal blockade that impacted $356 million of goods daily, Dixon threw her support behind this major economic chokehold on Michigan and encouraged it to continue.
The auto industry suffered “$299.9 million in direct losses,” and assembly plants at GM and Ford were forced to cancel shifts due to a lack of parts traveling across the bridge, which resulted in workers weathering up to $51 million in lost wages.
