In early August 2024, the multinational automaker Stellantis (STLA) — the parent company of established American auto brands Chrysler, Jeep, Dodge, and Ram Trucks — announced that it would lay off nearly 2,450 workers while it sunsets production of the Ram 1500 Classic; a truck that predates Stellantis and has been in production for roughly 15 years.
At the time, labor advocates like the United Auto Workers union lambasted Stellantis's decision to cease producing the old model despite Stellantis assuring that the affected workers would get a year of supplemental unemployment benefits paid by the automaker, a year of transition assistance, and two years of health care coverage.
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In a statement, he blamed Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares for the cuts, calling the decision an example of unapologetic corporate greed.
"Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares is a disgrace and an embarrassment to a once-great American company. While GM and Ford report fantastic profits and increased sales, Stellantis is going backwards. Meanwhile, Tavares jacks up his own pay by 56 percent while laying off thousands of autoworkers," Fain said in a statement at the time to Detroit-area Fox affiliate Fox 2 WJBK-TV
Related: Fact Check: Stellantis layoffs are not Kamala Harris' fault
At a Detroit-area rally later the same month, U.S. Vice Presidential hopeful J.D. Vance solely blamed the cuts on Democratic Presidential nominee and incumbent Vice President Kamala Harris, noting that she "has done nothing" in response.
"When American businesses threatened to shut down factories and move them to Mexico and China, remember what Trump did? He picked up the phone and said, ‘If you do that, I’m going to introduce you to a little word called the tariff,’" Vance told the crowd in Grand Rapids.
Stellantis follows through on its promise
As per a report by Automotive News, Stellantis began a wave of layoffs following the end of production of the Ram 1500 pickup earlier this month.
The cuts come after the company expected the shift to solely Jeep Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer production to affect up to 2,450 workers. Still, the actual number of laid-off factory workers was close to about half of the expected amount.
"With the introduction of the new 2025 Ram 1500 Tradesman, production of the Ram Classic came to an end at the Warren (Michigan) Truck Assembly Plant on Oct. 4," Stellantis said in a statement. "As a result of this action, indefinite layoffs — as announced in August — began on Oct. 12 for approximately 1,100 employees, far fewer than the total number of employees who received [layoff notices]."
Based on the previous-generation Ram 1500 introduced for the 2009 model year, the Ram Classic was a lower-cost option for customers looking to get into the Ram brand. With production ending, Ram customers will have to pay up for the 2025 Ram 1500 Tradesman, which is made at the nearby Sterling Heights Assembly Plant in Sterling Heights, Michigan.
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Stellantis has a new wave of cuts
Laid-off factory workers are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the tidal wave of cost-cutting measures that Stellantis has been implementing to save itself. At this stage, the undertaker of 14 unique auto brands is taking drastic measures and selling off pieces that might affect how they develop attractive and technologically advanced cars.
As first reported by CNBC, Stellantis plans to close one of its key research and development facility, its proving grounds in Yucca, Arizona, by the end of 2024.
According to Stellantis, the 4,000-acre "year-round testing facility" in the Arizona desert employs 69 employees and "includes an 18-acre vehicle dynamics area, durability mileage accumulation testing (specifically for high temperatures and dust), noise, vibration and harshness (NVH) development, pass-by-noise development and certification, and solar load and thermal tests."
Acquired from Ford by what was then-Chrysler in 2007 for $35 million, the site is built on a former gunnery school and pilot training facility for the U.S. military. Its facilities have been instrumental in developing many of Stellantis's high-dollar, high-performance machines, like the 702-horsepower Ram 1500 TRX performance pickup truck.
In a statement, Stellantis notes that it "continues to look for opportunities to improve efficiency and optimize its footprint to ensure future competitiveness in today's rapidly changing global market," but hasn't forgotten about the UAW-represented employees at the facility.
"The company is working with the UAW to offer proving ground employees special packages or they can choose to follow their work in a transfer of operations," Stellantis said. "Alternatively, employees could be placed on indefinite layoff which would entitle them to pay and benefits for two years."
In lieu of the Yucca facility, Stellantis's hot-weather testing and R&D operations will transfer to Toyota’s proving grounds in Wittman, Arizona, located northwest of Phoenix. According to Toyota, the 12,000-acre R&D facility contains many of the same facilities, including vehicle dynamic areas, a 10-mile oval, and off-road facilities.
Stellantis NV, which trades on the New York Stock Exchange as STLA, is down 2.45% from the opening bell and is trading at $12.94 at the time of this writing.
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