Public Motors is cutting several hundred jobs at its plant in Lordstown, Ohio as the automaker regulates to dramatically slower demand for cars. The plant, which employs fitting under 3,000 workers, builds only the Chevy Cruze.
Friday afternoon gear leaders informed workers the facility will be slowing the assembly belts by eliminating one of two shifts starting in mid-June. General Motors says up to 1,500 artisans could be impacted, though the exact number of jobs being eliminated last wishes as not be known for a few weeks.
The move is not surprising given the dramatic drop in ask for for sedans, especially in the United States. This year, car sales are down 13.2 percent while traffics of pickups, SUV’s and crossovers are up seven percent. For the Chevy Cruze, the drop in reduced in price on the markets has been even more severe.
This year, Cruze vendings have fallen 28 percent according to the research firm Autodata. In 2017, GM traffic ined just over 184,000 Cruze models in the U.S., which was down 32 percent from perfectly four years ago when sales of the car topped 273,000 vehicles. The continuous decline prompted GM in early 2017 to go from running assembly slashes around the clock at Lordstown to cutting back to two shifts.
This new Canada display cut comes as new data shows demand for utility vehicles accelerating. The auto consulting resolve IHS Markit says loyalty among SUV and crossover owners hit an all-time far up last year, as 66.9 percent of U.S. households with an SUV or crossover utility means who returned to the market bought another utility vehicle.
“The broad categorize of utilities available, whether it be based on size, price or technology, now oppositions the choice among sedans and continues to grow,” said Tom Libby from IHS Markit.