GM responds to pressure from Trump over closed factories
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| Barra (L) with the late Sergio Marchionne (R) in a meeting at the White House with President Trump in 2017 |
President Donald Trump threatened on Tuesday to cut all General Motors subsidies after the automaker announced thousands of jobs cuts.
"Very disappointed with General Motors and their CEO, Mary Barra, for closing plants in Ohio, Michigan and Maryland," Trump tweeted. "We are now looking at cutting all @GM subsidies, including for electric cars."
GM (GM) stock declined as much as 3.8% on the comments. GM closed 2.6% lower, wiping out a chunk of Monday's gains.
Trump's threat came a day after GM announced plans to cut 14,000 jobs and shut five facilities in North America, dealing a blow to the president's promise to help auto workers. GM said the moves are designed to prepare the company for a future of driverless and electric vehicles. GM is also responding to a consumer shift away from sedans in favor of trucks and SUVs.
Statement from Mary T. Barra, CEO of GM:
GM is committed to maintaining a strong manufacturing presence in the U.S., as evidenced by our more than $22 billion investments in U.S. operations since 2009. Yesterday’s announcements support our ability to invest for future growth and position the company for long-term success and maintain and grow American jobs. Many of the U.S. workers impacted by these actions will have the opportunity to shift to other GM plants where we will need more employees to support growth in trucks, crossovers and SUVs. GM’s transformation also includes adding technical and engineering jobs to support the future of mobility, such as new jobs in electrification and autonomous vehicles.
We appreciate the actions this administration has taken on behalf of industry to improve the overall competitiveness of U.S. manufacturing.
GM IN OHIO
We remain committed to manufacturing in Ohio, with approximately 4,000 employees contributing to our ongoing business. In addition to Lordstown GM has locations in Defiance, Moraine, Parma, Toledo, Warren and West Chester.
Other GM impact in Ohio:
- We have 889 suppliers across Ohio and spend over $2 billion dollars on Ohio suppliers every year.
- We have 213 dealers with approximately 62 employees per dealership, that’s around 13,000 employees.
- We’ve had over $1.9 billion in investments announced since 2009 and over $2 million in charitable donations since in 2008.
GM IN MICHIGAN
We remain committed to manufacturing in Michigan, including our 13 manufacturing operations with more than 51,000 employees contributing to our ongoing business.