GM to get rid of 50,000 workers within mos. [View All]

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/13541353/


GM to shed quarter of workforce this year

General Motors will on Monday disclose details of one of most dramatic corporate downsizings in US history, exceeding a key target of its turnround plan and accelerating the demise of the privileged American car worker.

Rick Wagoner, chief executive, is expected to announce that about 30,000 workers – more than a quarter of GM's blue-collar US workforce – have taken up its offer of early retirement and severance packages.

Almost all will leave by the end of the year, achieving in a few months what the company had set out to accomplish over more than two years.

A total of 50,000 workers or more is set to leave the industry over the next few months.

Later this week, Delphi – the former GM subsidiary which is north America's biggest auto parts maker – is expected to disclose that at least 9,000 of its 31,000 unionised workers have accepted similar buy-outs.

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In addition, Ford, the second-biggest Detroit-based carmaker, has disclosed that more than 10,000 workers have taken packages. All three companies are also cutting salaried staff.
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sigh