On the Dash:
- GM furloughed 5,500 workers across three U.S. EV plants due to slowing demand and loss of federal tax credits.
- Factory Zero in Detroit, Ultium battery plant in Ohio, and Spring Hill, Tennessee, were the main sites affected.
- GM is reassessing EV production strategy after $35 billion in plug-in investments and a $1.6 billion third-quarter EV-related charge.
General Motors has temporarily cut about 5,500 workers across three U.S. plants as the automaker reassesses electric vehicle production following the elimination of federal EV tax credits. The move reflects GM’s response to a sharp slowdown in EV demand despite years of heavy investment in plug-in technology.
The largest impact is at GM’s Factory Zero plant in Detroit, where 3,400 employees who were furloughed over the summer are affected. About 2,200 of those workers are expected to return in January when the plant resumes one-shift operations, while 1,200 remain on indefinite furlough. Factory Zero produces the Chevrolet Silverado EV, GMC Sierra EV, and Hummer EV.
Other affected facilities include GM’s Ultium battery plant in Warren, Ohio, where 1,400 employees were laid off, with 850 potentially returning in May and 550 considered indefinite, and the Spring Hill, Tennessee plant, where 710 temporary layoffs occurred.
The staffing cuts are part of a broader retrenchment as GM scales back EV production amid declining market growth. EV sales were already slowing before the federal tax credit of up to $7,500 per vehicle was eliminated in September. GM had lobbied to retain the incentives and aimed to reduce EV costs to stimulate demand, but the company has had to downgrade its ambitious EV strategy.
Under CEO Mary Barra, GM invested $35 billion in plug-in technology, a strategy now being reevaluated. The automaker took a $1.6 billion charge in the third quarter tied to EV investments and expects additional charges in the fourth quarter as it adjusts production needs. The latest workforce reductions follow cuts of more than 200 salaried positions at GM’s Tech Center in Warren, Michigan.
