Volkswagen of America will close its Chattanooga factory on Monday for deep cleaning as a precautionary measure against the spreading coronavirus.
In a message to Automotive News, the automaker said the shutdown will “allow plant employees time to make arrangements for child care during the two-week school closure there. This will be paid time off.
“We will also take this time to augment the already increased sanitary and deep-cleaning measures undertaken at our facility.”
The factory, which employs about 3,800 people, will reopen Tuesday.
The Chattanooga complex is VW’s sole U.S. production facility. It builds the Atlas crossover and Passat sedan, and production of the ID4 electric vehicle is scheduled to begin there in 2022.
