Auto plant idlings compound uncertainty for employees

By Keith Roysdon, Star Press

kroysdon@muncie.gannett.com

MUNCIE -- As other auto industry plants are idled for weeks, Muncie's BorgWarner Automotive is taking its customary Christmas break plus an extra week, and workers there are uncertain what to expect in the final months before the plant's projected shuttering in April.

Economist Michael Hicks said some other automotive plants around the country might stay closed past their projected Jan. 19 reopening.