AM I NEXT? NO LOVE AT TOYOTA

Aichi, Japan-based Toyota Financial Services, the finance division of the iconic Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer, has announced the phased consolidation and relocation of three of its six customer service centers to the company's existing regional service centers in Chandler, Arizona; Plano, Texas; and Alpharetta Georgia. The restructuring will affect approximately 1,100 employees, including 600 employees in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, over the next two years.

According to a company spokesperson, "Toyota Financial Services (TFS) is committed to providing a best-in-class customer experience and exceeding our customer expectations. Over the next two years, TFS will relocate three regional Customer Service Centers to be co-located with existing regional Dealer Service Centers located in Chandler, Arizona (serving the West region), Plano, Texas (serving the Central region), and Alpharetta, Georgia (serving the East region)."

"We are excited about our plans to evolve our customer service operations to provide greater value to our customers and dealers and create stronger career opportunities for our team members. Our objective with this restructuring is to streamline TFS’s field office structure and invest in new technology to deliver better service to our customers."

Change is coming. There will always be a tomorrow, no matter how much you may try to ignore it. There are no guarantees in life or promises for a bright future. Just because something bad hasn't happened yet, doesn't mean it won't. It can happen to anyone, anytime, anywhere. No one is guaranteed to wake up tomorrow and still have a job by evening. Are you now wondering, Am I Next?

AM I NEXT? NO LOVE AT GENERAL MOTORS (09/22/24)

SEPTEMBER 22, 2024 — MASSIVE LAYOFF IN KANSAS CITY, KANSAS

The company will lay off 1,695 workers at its Fairfax Assembly plant in Kansas City, Kansas, in two phases. The first phase will begin on November 18, 2024, impacting 686 full-time workers temporarily and terminating 250 temporary employees. The second phase will begin on January 12, 2025, when 759 full-time workers will be temporarily laid off when the plant re-tools.

FEBRUARY 28, 2023 — 500 SALARIED EMPLOYEES

The company has announced a cost-cutting initiative that would eliminate 500 executive-level and salaried employees across various functions of the company.

According to a company spokesperson, “Today’s action follows our most recent performance calibration and supports managing the attrition curve as part of our overall structural costs reduction effort. This action impacts a small number of salaried employees and executives globally."

AUGUST 27, 2021 — 122 LAYOFFS IN TOLEDO, OHIO

The company has announced the layoff of 122 employees at its Toledo Transmission Operations by September 27, 2021.

The production schedule for the 6-speed rear-wheel drive transmission at the plant will result in the layoffs of 122 production employees including 16 permanent and 106 temporary workers.

The decision was driven by “GM's review of customers' needs and market demands.”

MARCH 4, 2021 — Original post…

Detroit, Michigan-based General Motors Company, the iconic American automobile, and parts manufacturer, has announced that it will be permanently laying off 160 to 170 employees at its Flint, Michigan engine assembly facility.

It appears that the decision to permanently lay off workers due to the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic and a worldwide shortage of semiconductor chips used in automotive control systems. Approximately 50 to 150 or more semiconductor chips may be required in control and monitoring systems per vehicle.

Flint Engine Operations primarily builds the turbo-assisted engine for use in the Chevrolet Equinox which is assembled in Canada.

Disruptions in supply-chain management is often used by manufacturers to adjust the size of a unionized workforce to better match current or projected future revenue flows.

Politicians are also commenting on the layoffs as an excuse to produce critical semiconductors domestically to prevent such chips from being a bargaining chip in trade wars.

According to experts, the semiconductor shortage is the result of an unusually large demand last year for electronic devices used by consumers confined to home due to mandatory pandemic lockdowns.

Change is coming. There will always be a tomorrow, no matter how much you may try to ignore it. There are no guarantees in life or promises for a bright future. Just because something bad hasn't happened yet, doesn't mean it won't. It can happen to anyone, anytime, anywhere. No one is guaranteed to wake up tomorrow and still have a job by evening. Are you now wondering, Am I Next?

AM I NEXT? IS THE HANDWRITING ON THE WALL AT GOODYEAR TIRE & COOPER TIRE? (03/19/23)

MARCH 19, 2023 — 500 EMPLOYEES TARGETED

Goodyear has announced that they are reducing salaried staff globally by about 5%, or 500 positions, through the first six months of 2023 and that they cannot provide a definitive answer about cuts in Cooper Tire’s Findlay offices. The cuts are said to be linked to a global slowdown in the replacement tire business.

SEPTEMBER 16, 2021 — 80 LAYOFFS IN CONTINUING REORGANIZATION.

According to a company statement,

“Cooper continues to respond to changes in the tire industry, transforming our company to best position us for long-term profitable growth.

These changes include addressing our organizational structure, a process that has resulted in the reorganization of certain departments, and the elimination of approximately 80 salaried positions within North America.

This includes approximately 60 salaried positions in Findlay [Ohio] with the vast majority of those being corporate roles. The remainder of the eliminated positions are salaried roles in Tupelo [Mississipi] and Texarkana [Texas], with most being in Texarkana.

While a decision to eliminate positions is very difficult, the reorganization will help our business operate more effectively and efficiently and will align our people to deliver the transformation necessary to execute our strategic plans and drive growth.”

MARCH 3, 2021— Original post…

Akron, Ohio-based Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company, the large American multinational tire manufacturing company, has announced the purchase of Findlay, Ohio-based Cooper Tire & Rubber Company, a maker of replacement automobile and truck tires specialty tires for medium truck, motorcycle, and racing tires for $2.8 billion.

As with any acquisition, there comes a reduction in force where duplicative products, processes, and personnel are eliminated to streamline operations and reduce costs.

A company spokesperson has noted, "The initial cost benefits will come from combining corporate functions, research and development, and procurement. And while no manufacturing jobs or plants are being eliminated initially, the companies said they see opportunities to leverage their combined production system."

“As we develop business plans, we’ll start to take a look at what opportunities, including revenue growth and including how to better leverage the combined manufacturing footprint, we might be able to get. We definitely feel like those opportunities are going to be there.”

The acquisition is subject to shareholder and regulatory permissions and is expected to close in the second-half of 2021.

Change is coming. There will always be a tomorrow, no matter how much you may try to ignore it. There are no guarantees in life or promises for a bright future. Just because something bad hasn't happened yet, doesn't mean it won't. It can happen to anyone, anytime, anywhere. No one is guaranteed to wake up tomorrow and still have a job by evening. Are you now wondering, Am I Next?