GM seeks to reduce costs by offering buyouts to 18,000 employees – TechCrunch

General Motors has offered voluntary buyouts to 18,000 North American employees who have at least 12 years of experience, as the builder seeks to cut costs while investing in its electric and self-sustaining future.

The company described this as a proactive measure to prepare for headwinds such as weak sales in North America and China, commodity prices and tariffs.

But it's all about preparing for the future. The company has undergone a transformation over the last four to five years, abandoning expensive and loss-making programs such as the Opel brand in Europe, and investing more in electrification and autonomous vehicle technology. .

And that does not waste time.

GM gives these employees until November 19 to decide if they will accept the buyout offer. Those who accept will receive severance pay starting February 1, 2019.

Approximately 36% of the company's 50,000 employees in North America are eligible for redemption. A GM spokesman declined to say how many employees he expected to accept, except to predict that it was unlikely to be around 18,000.

GM has committed to a $ 6.5 billion cost reduction mission over three years, which is expected by the end of the year. GM chief financial officer Dhivya Suryadevara said in a call for results on Wednesday that GM had realized savings of $ 6.3 billion by the end of the third quarter.

GM's cost-cutting measures took place in parallel with its investments and commitments in electrification and stand-alone technology. GM acquired Cruise Automation for a billion dollars in 2016. Earlier this year, the automaker announced that it would invest an additional $ 1.1 billion in its self-sustaining unit under a broader agreement with SoftBank. Cruise Holdings has announced the launch of a commercial autonomous vehicle transportation service in 2019.

He also focused on hiring software engineers and will continue to add such jobs even at the time of the buyout, according to GM.

GM's plan is to launch 20 new 100% electric vehicles worldwide by 2023 and increase Chevy Bolt production. Mary Barra, president and CEO of GM, said at an event that the company was preparing to build more 100% electric vehicles, while improvements were continuing in its expanded battery lab and that A new LG Electronics factory in Michigan is online.

The LG Electronics plant in Hazel Park will begin manufacturing batteries this fall to power GM's GM assembly plant, where the automaker is building the all-electric Chevrolet Bolt.