Stellantis, the parent company of Chrysler, announced its decision to lay off about 400 employees on Friday. They said the move aims to smoothen operations, cut costs, and accelerate plans for electric vehicle production.
The Italian-American automaker revealed that it will be reducing its engineering/technology and software departments by around 400 US positions, effective March 31.
The firing took place during a "mandatory remote work day" for the US employees within Stellantis' engineering and technology division. “It was a mass firing of everybody who was on the call,” an unnamed mechanical engineer told Fox News.
“So they continue to push low-cost countries (India, Mexico, and Brazil) that are more efficient for the company and more profitable. The auto industry is making a lot of money, but it's facing a lot of challenges. You've got the electrification situation, which is going to cost carmakers a lot of money. You've got the new UAW contract, which also costs carmakers a lot of money. So it's not only Stellantis. Everybody is looking at the bottom line,” the engineer said.
The company said in an emailed statement, “While we understand this is difficult news, these actions will better align resources while preserving the critical skills needed to protect our competitive advantage as we remain laser focused on implementing our EV product offensive and our Dare Forward 2030 strategic plan,” according to CNBC. “As the auto industry continues to face unprecedented uncertainties and heightened competitive pressures around the world, Stellantis continues to make the appropriate structural decisions across the enterprise to improve efficiency and optimize our cost structure.”
Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares has been actively implementing cost-saving measures, including layoffs, buyouts, and other strategies, since the merger of Fiat Chrysler and French automaker PSA Groupe in 2021. He had previously offered buyouts to US employees twice last year, including providing financial incentives to 6,400 salaried workers in November.