General Motors will idle plants in Ohio and Louisiana for one week next week, affecting 5,000 employees, Associated Press (AP) reported.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Discover B2B Marketing That Performs
Combine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms.
AP said GM is interrupting production at its Lordstown, Ohio, plant, which makes Chevrolet Cavaliers and Pontiac Sunfires, and its Shreveport, Louisiana, plant, which makes the Chevrolet S-10 and GMC Sonoma pickup trucks.
About 3,000 workers in Lordstown and 2,000 workers in Shreveport will be temporarily laid off, GM spokesman Dan Flores told AP, adding that regular production will resume on April 14.
“This was a market-driven decision to make an adjustment in the plants’ output,” Flores said.
AP said that, during March, sales of the Cavalier dropped 14.8%, according to AutoData, and Sunfire sales fell 48.7%. Sales of the S-10 dropped 21.8% and the Sonoma by 27.7%.
According to AP, GM said second-quarter production would hit 1.39 million — a 10% decline from the year-ago period – but the company is running overtime at six other truck plants and two car plants.
Associated Press also reported that the Ford Focus plant in Wayne, Michigan, plant will continue to be idled after closing last week while the Oakville, Ontario, plant, which makes the Ford Windstar, will be idled next week.
AP said Focus rose 17.5% in March, while Windstar sales fell 21%, according to AutoData.
Ford ran overtime at eight of its truck plants this week, AP noted.
