General Motors announced a mega global adjustment – Diario El Ciudadano and the region

US automaker giant General Motors announced Monday that it would cut its workforce by 15% as part of a major restructuring aimed at saving $ 6 billion by 2020, in order to adapt to "changing market conditions".

The plan that will eliminate some of the company's 180,000 employees worldwide includes the closing of three badembly plants in North America in 2019, including one in Ontario, Canada and the rest in the United States.

In addition, GM expects to cease operations at other production plants, including those outside of North America, with the goal of "setting priorities for future investment" in the next generation of electric vehicles.

"The actions we take today continue our transformation to be agile, resilient and profitable, while leaving us the flexibility for future investments," said Mary Barra, executive director of the company, in a statement.

"We recognize the need to anticipate changing market conditions and customer preferences in order to position our company for long-term success," he added.

The company said that the current vehicle offering being optimized, "more than 75 percent of GM's global sales volume is expected to come from five vehicle architectures early in the next decade."

GM is looking to concentrate production on the most profitable vehicles, such as SUVs and SUVs. In an appeal to investors, Barra said some models, such as the Chevrolet Cruze, would no longer be available in North America.

Another consequence of the plan is the impact on the company's financial performance in the last quarter of 2018 and the first of 2019. The exceptional charge will be between $ 3,000 and $ 3,800 million.

"Heart and soul" of Oshawa

The restructuring will result in 15% of the 180,000 jobs, including a 25% reduction of employees in management positions to "speed up decision making".

The Canadian plant that will be closed currently employs approximately 3,000 people.

Shortly after the release of the GM plan, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was "deeply disappointed" by the company's decision.

"GM workers have been part of the heart and soul of Oshawa for generations and we will do everything in our power to help families affected by this information get back on their feet," he said. said Trudeau on Twitter.

GM had already announced plans to shut down its plant in Gunsan, Korea.

The price of GM shares has stopped before the announcement. Once restarted, 20 minutes later, stock prices rose more than 6%.

The restructuring follows a similar initiative by Ford to reduce the number of models it manufactures.