By Nora Eckert
DETROIT (Reuters) -Stellantis said on Wednesday it is laying off about 1,100 employees at a Jeep Gladiator plant in Toledo, Ohio, as it works to improve efficiency and reduce inventory across its North American operations.
The automaker recently shook up senior management in an attempt to revive slipping sales in the region, and has cut its salaried and hourly workforce over the past year.
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“These are difficult actions to take, but they are necessary to enable the company to regain its competitive edge and eventually return production to prior levels,” Stellantis said in a statement.
The company’s stock is down about 39% this year.
CEO Carlos Tavares’ decision to slash manufacturing workers, such as those in Toledo, has angered the United Auto Workers union, which represents these employees.
UAW President Shawn Fain has threatened a nationwide walkout at Stellantis factories just a year after a six-week strike at the automaker and its Detroit competitors.
Fain highlighted Stellantis’ delays in a planned billion-dollar investment into a new battery plant and factory in Belvidere, Illinois as a sign it is breaking promises in a labor deal with the union last year.
Stellantis has said it is abiding by the terms.
The UAW didn’t respond to a request for comment about the indefinite layoffs in Toledo, which Stellantis said will be effective as early as Jan. 5.
The company’s workforce decisions drew the attention of Vice President Kamala Harris and President-elect Donald Trump who told the automaker to keep jobs in the U.S.
Trump said last week he would put a 100% tariff on Stellantis if the automaker tried moving U.S. jobs to Mexico.
Affected employees at Toledo’s South Assembly Plant, which is moving to one shift from two, will get one year of supplemental unemployment benefits under the UAW contract, Stellantis said.
(Reporting by Nora Eckert; Editing by Chris Reese, Diane Craft and Cynthia Osterman)
