General Motors revealed on Thursday that more than 6,000 hourly workers accepted the company’s latest buyout offer. Linked to the automaker’s recent Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing, the latest round of buyouts is intended to make GM a leaner and faster moving company.
Including the 6,000 workers that accepted GM’s latest buyout offer, the Detroit-based automaker now employs about 48,000 U.S. factory workers. GM says it plans to eliminate about another 7,500 hourly workers by year’s end. Overall, GM has eliminated 66,000 U.S. factory workers since 2006.
Additionally, General Motors – now majority owned by the United States government – will also cut about 6,000 salaried positions by the end of 2009. The General will also thin its global executive ranks by about 35 percent.
“One of the very tough, but necessary actions to position the company for long-term viability and success is to reduce our total U.S. workforce, both hourly and salaried employees,” Diana Tremblay, GM vice president of labor relations, told Automotive News.
Most of the 6,000 hourly workers left GM on August 1 while GM’s salaried ranks will be cleared out by October.
