Stellantis NV is expected to terminate 191 workers at its Sterling Heights Assembly Plant by this weekend, according to the United Auto Workers.
Some 177 of those affected are supplemental workers, also called temps, according to a letter to members from UAW Local 1700, which represents workers at the plant. Another 14 are full-time employees that have lower seniority with the company. The Sterling Heights plant, known as SHAP, builds the Ram 1500 pickup.
Additional supplemental workers at the Toledo Assembly Complex in Ohio, which builds the Jeep Wrangler SUV and Gladiator pickup, were also being notified of their termination early this week. It was not immediately clear how many in Toledo were affected.
Stellantis said the cuts were part of two separate actions. The supplementals were being terminated effective Oct. 1 after they were hired to help cover for “increased summer vacation usage during the summer months.”
Meanwhile, the company said additional indefinite layoffs of full-time employees are planned “across its footprint.” It did not provide a timeline for those additional job cuts.
“Stellantis is in full execution mode focused on both protecting the company from the continued intense external market conditions and, at the same time, offering customers vehicles they can afford,” said a statement sent by spokesperson Ann Marie Fortunate, related to the planned full-time employee cuts. “As such, we are continuing to take the necessary actions to improve operations across our facilities; this includes on-going assessments of our manufacturing processes to improve efficiency.”
Union officials said they expect the SHAP layoff will create openings for more senior workers who are scheduled to be let go from the nearby Warren Truck Assembly Plant in October, when production of the Ram 1500 Classic ends. Stellantis warned that the Warren layoff could, at maximum, affect 2,450 workers, though union officials believe it will be roughly 1,600.
Eric Watters, vice president of Local 1700, said the cut will mean all of SHAP’s supplemental workers are gone. Supplementals are union members but are paid less and receive fewer benefits than their colleagues, and help cover shifts for regular workers at Stellantis facilities.
The company previously relied more heavily on them, with some keeping their temporary part-time status for years despite sometimes working full-time hours. Under the UAW-Stellantis contract signed last year, several thousand were rolled over to full-time employment status, but many others have been let go at a number of plants.
“The UAW is committed to fighting for our workers, and we’re going to do everything in our power to hold Stellantis accountable for the decisions that they make,” Watters said.
He said local union leaders have been asking about potential job cuts at SHAP but were reassured by the company that the plant is busy building the Ram 1500s. The factory is also slated to build an electric and extended-range version of the pickup.
The union was caught off guard, he said: “The company was very, very secretive about what their plans are.”
Eric Graham, president of Local 140, which represents workers at Warren Truck, said his understanding is many of his full-time members — laid off when a shift is permanently cut at the plant next month — should be able to take at least some of the roles vacated by supplementals at several southeast Michigan Stellantis plants.
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