GM cutting hundreds of jobs to reduce costs

Feb 28 (Reuters) - General Motors Co (GM.N) is cutting hundreds of 
executive-level and salaried jobs as it looks to cut costs and streamline 
operations, a person briefed on the matter told Reuters on Tuesday.

The global reductions are in the "low hundreds," the person said.

GM Chief People Officer Arden Hoffman said in a letter to employees on 
Tuesday the Detroit automaker is "committed to $2 billion in cost savings 
in the next two years, which we’ll find by reducing corporate expenses, 
overhead, and complexity in all our products."

GM disclosed the $2 billion cost cut target in January. The automaker said 
in January it did not plan layoffs and on Tuesday did not characterize the 
cuts as layoffs.

GM said the job action Tuesday "follows our most recent performance 
calibration and supports managing the attrition curve as part of our 
overall structural costs reduction effort."

Hoffman said "in an environment where our competitors’ margins are 
improving, it's imperative that we act now and focus on our own 
efficiency."

Hoffman added that "to deliver on our commitments and to beat the 
competition, we need to have the winning team, bar none. We need a culture 
shift that enables us to hold ourselves accountable for achieving the 
higher levels of operating that are now required."

GM shares closed down 1.5%.

Hoffman said "globally, employees and leaders will be equipped with 
options to address any issues with greater urgency, so we can achieve our 
boldest goals.... This is a fundamental cultural shift to be more 
performance-driven and accountable."

Earlier this month, Ford Motor (F.N) said it was cutting one in nine jobs 
in Europe, axing 3,800 roles in product development and administration as 
part of a drive to lower costs in the region and concentrate engineering 
know-how in the United States.

Stellantis (STLAM.MI) and unions on Monday signed an agreement to cut up 
to 2,000 workers from the carmaker's Italian operations this year through 
voluntary redundancies. On Tuesday, Stellantis indefinitely idled a plant 
in Illinois that employs about 1,350 workers.

<https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/gm-cutting-hundreds-jobs-it-looks-
reduce-costs-2023-02-28/>