The headquarters of American automobile manufacturer General Motos (GM) in Detroit, Michigan.
Uli Deck | Alliance in pictures | Getty Images
DETROIT – General engines The automaker laid off more than 200 workers on Friday, as the automaker continues to reevaluate its business and cut costs to boost profits.
The affected employees were largely computer-aided design, or CAD, engineers who worked at the company’s global technology campus in metro Detroit, according to GM.
“We are restructuring our design engineering team to strengthen our core architectural design engineering capabilities,” GM said in an emailed statement. “As a result, a number of CAD execution roles have been eliminated. We recognize the efforts and achievements of the team members involved, and thank them for their contributions. »
GM declined to comment on the number of employees affected, but a source familiar with the matter confirmed to CNBC that it was more than 200 employees, which was first reported by Bloomberg News. The person spoke anonymously because their number had not yet been made public.
Employees were told their positions would be eliminated due to “business conditions” and not their performance via Microsoft The teams are calling Friday, the source said.
The Detroit automaker has been regularly reviewing its business units and organizations for years in an effort to cut costs, increase profits and eliminate what it considers unnecessary or overstaffed positions for future operations.
The most recent layoffs represent a small percentage of the automaker’s salaried workforce, but continue a trend of downsizing white-collar workers in the United States. GM’s U.S. salaried workforce fell from 53,000 in 2023 to 50,000 at the end of last year.
GM layoffs also come a day after all-electric vehicle maker’s layoffs Rivien has laid off about 4.5% of its workforce, or more than 600 people, to restructure some teams as the electric vehicle market faces growing challenges amid political changes and slower-than-expected demand.
The most recent cuts come as President Donald Trump touted on social media Friday that Ford engine and GM are “BIG Raise Rates” amid last week’s rate changes for heavy-duty and medium-duty trucks, which it called “large and mid-size trucks.”
While Ford and GM, including CEO Mary Barra, this week welcomed the tariff changes, which also included extending offsets on U.S.-produced vehicles, automakers are still facing additional costs related to the levies. These changes simply help reduce these additional costs.
The layoffs come days after GM raised its 2025 financial forecast on Tuesday, beating Wall Street expectations for third-quarter earnings and bottom line, giving the stock its second best day on the market since emerging from bankruptcy in 2009.
GM shares are up more than 29% this year, while Ford shares are up about 38%. Both hit new 52-week highs on Friday.