Automotive giant General Motors is preparing for layoffs at its assembly plant in Wentzville, Missouri.
Although the layoffs will be temporary, the majority of the workers at the plant will be affected, according to a letter sent to employees by the plant’s executive director and the local UAW representative.
GM’s Wentzville plant builds the company’s Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon mid-size trucks, as well as the Chevrolet Express and GMC Savana full-size vans. The latter two are some of GM’s longest-running offerings and were rumored to be due for a complete EV revamp by 2026, but GM walked back on those plans, according to GMAuthority.
The reason for the temporary layoff—expected to last between September 29 and October 19—is a parts shortage.
GM didn’t respond to a request for comment from Gizmodo. We’ll update this post when we receive a reply.
The parts shortage is only the latest in a string of headwinds for GM, the major one being the Trump administration’s attack on the electric vehicle industry that caused the automotive giant to reevaluate its electrification strategy.
One of Donald Trump’s first courses of action as President was to initiate the repeal process of an electric vehicle consumer tax credit worth $7,500. Although the current tax credit was passed as part of President Joe Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act, an EV tax credit has existed in one form or another for more than a decade.
The tax credits are set to expire on September 30, plunging the electric vehicle industry into the great unknown.
That unknown caused GM to cut output at a major electric vehicle assembly plant, temporarily lay off workers, and indefinitely delay a shift at a Kansas City assembly plant that was set to produce electric Chevy Bolts later this year, Reuters reported in September.
GM’s (and America’s) EV test
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