Stellantis has announced it will be laying off up to 2,450 workers at its Warren, Michigan assembly plant, due to the end of production of the Ram Classic pickup truck.
The layoffs are for an indefinite period. The plant will now concentrate solely on production of Jeep's Wagoneer SUV.
The company says the layoffs go into effect as early as October 8, and that the actual number of workers affected will probably be lower than the total given in a notice submitted to state authorities.
The layoffs result from Stellantis eliminating one of the plant's two daily production shifts in July. At the time, The automaker said this was due to a temporary reduction in production. The automaker is in the midst of a worldwide effort to cut expenses.
The Warren Truck plant will now operate with a single shift for general assembly, although “other operations within the plant will still operate with two shifts to support Jeep Wagoneer production,” the company said. Warren Truck employs some 3,900 workers, 3,700 of which are represented by the UAW (United Auto Workers).
The affected workers will benefit from one year of additional unemployment paid by Stellantis, one year of transition assistance and two years of medical coverage. Employees will also be eligible for state unemployment benefits.
That puts a balm on things, but it's always sad to see job losses.
These was inevitable, however. The Ram Classic generation has been in production since 2009. In fact, when the Ram pickup was renewed in 2019, the company decided to market that older generation alongside the new one. The move proved brilliantly popular. However, all good things must come to an end, and with a fairly transformed vintage coming in 2025, it was time to move on.
At least the employees have some time before the layoffs take effect.