The Michigan automotive industry is continuing to bleed jobs, and the Friday announcement of additional 400 layoffs at Big Three automaker Stellantis isn’t helping to quell the growing panic that the company may permanently relocate its headquarters from the state.
According to Crain’s Detroit Business, the layoffs of 400 United Auto Workers at Stellantis’ Freud Street Warehouse could occur as early as Jan. 5. Friday’s announcement follows news on Wednesday that Stellantis was laying off 1,100 Toledo employees who build the Jeep Gladiator.
In August, Stellantis said it would “temporarily” lay off 1,600 employees at its Warren Truck facility, where the company built the recently discontinued Ram 1500 pickup. In total, the discontinuation of the Ram has been reported to effect by Jan. 2025 the livelihoods of 2,450 workers. That layoffs rumbled through the supply chain, automotive seating manufacturer Bridgewater Interiors LCC to cut 63 workers and Warren-based Universal Logistics to let go 677 workers.
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Webasto Roofing Systems, a Ford Motor Company supplier that produces roof for the Bronco, also announced on Friday that it was cutting 218 employees, comprising the company’s entire third shift.
“This was a difficult, but necessary decision to align our staffing with reduced customer vehicle volumes,” Webasto spokeswoman Debbie Ortisi told Crain’s. “We appreciate and thank our C-shift colleagues for their contributions.”
In September, Stellantis revealed its plans to move production of its Dodge Durango overseas from its Detroit Assembly Complex,
Stellantis issued an earnings report in July that showed a decline of 48% through the first six months of 2024. That same month the company began offering buyouts for salaried employees, citing “inflationary pressures” and public rejection of the company’s transition to electric vehicles, which has been exacerbated by federal and state taxpayer-funded incentives.
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In a statement sent to Automotive News, the automaker noted: “As Stellantis navigates a transitional year, the focus is on realigning its U.S. operations to ensure a strong start to 2025. To improve the competitiveness of the operation, the company will transition the Freud Street sequencing facility to a third-party service provider, which will result in indefinite layoffs of approximately 400 represented employees.”
Stellantis isn’t the only Big Three automaker facing economic headwinds and customer skepticism over the government-mandated EV transition.
General Motors in August laid off 634 Michigan salaried employees at its Global Technical Center in Warren.
Government officials in Lansing have handed out billions of dollars in public grants, low-interest loans, land, and tax incentives over the past several decades to automakers with the often false promises of job creation and other such economic multipliers that are seldom realized. Despite decades of reputable economists and public policy experts pointing out that government-provided subsidies on the taxpayer dime never provide a comparable return on investment, government officials and programs such as the Michigan Economic Development Corporation and the Michigan Innovation Fund continue to shell out money to private industries and business startups.