Stellantis says it is cutting a shift at its Warren Truck Assembly Plant north of Detroit during July as the automaker tries to recalibrate its production and sales numbers, which fell sharply in the United States in the second quarter.
The automaker also said Tuesday that it is making production changes at its plants in Toledo, Ohio.
The shift cut and resulting layoffs will affect about 1,600 workers at the plant in Warren, which has about 3,300 represented hourly workers. The plant normally runs two shifts per day.
The plant produces the Jeep Wagoneer, Wagoneer L and Grand Wagoneer, as well as the Ram 1500 Classic, the older version of its Ram pickup.
“Stellantis is adjusting the operating pattern at its Warren Truck Assembly Plant to align production with sales. The plant will run one shift for the month of July. The company will continue to monitor demand and take the necessary action to balance inventories,” according to an emailed statement provided by company spokeswoman Jodi Tinson.
The Free Press has asked in recent weeks about any planned job cuts in North America, but the company did not provide any affirmative response.
On Tuesday, after confirming its plans for Warren, the automaker released a statement about Toledo. The Jeep Gladiator is produced there at the South plant, and the Jeep Wrangler and Wrangler 4xe are built at the North plant.
“Toledo South will be down starting the week of July 8 and resuming production the week of Aug. 19 to align production with sales, retool the plant for a new model and observe a week for summer vacation. Employees will be reassigned to support production at the Toledo North plant during this period, except during their summer vacation the week of Aug. 5,” according to a statement provided by Tinson.
At the company’s Investor Day in Auburn Hills last month, CEO Carlos Tavares made references to the need for a turnaround at two Stellantis plants in the United States but declined to provide specifics. The company also highlighted plans to shift more production to “best-cost countries.”
An analysis released this week from AutoForecast Solutions noted that “Stellantis continues to struggle as their foreign executives try to figure out how to manage the American brands they purchased in 2021. The production forecast at Stellantis is down 35,000 units from the prior forecast driven by the Ram full-sized truck and ProMaster commercial van.”
Stellantis on Tuesday released its second-quarter 2024 U.S. sales numbers, showing a 21% decline compared with the same period in 2023.
UAW President Shawn Fain criticized the shift cut at Warren, reported earlier by Automotive News, in a response to a Free Press request for comment.
“Stellantis can afford to keep Warren Truck running at two shifts, they just want to find another penny to pinch at the expense of hardworking autoworkers. Thanks to our contract, these workers will get layoff pay and benefits in the meantime while we fight to make sure Stellantis stops trying to kill U.S. jobs,” according to the statement provided by the Feldman Strategies public relations firm.
Contact Eric D. Lawrence: elawrence@freepress.com. Become a subscriber. Submit a letter to the editor at freep.com/letters.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Stellantis cites sales in shift cut at Warren, changes in Toledo
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