Stellantis laying off up to 2,450 workers at Mich. truck plant

Stellantis says it will indefinitely lay off as many as 2,450 workers as its Warren Truck Assembly Plant in Michigan ends production of the Ram 1500 Classic to focus solely on the Jeep Wagoneer SUV.

The automaker said layoffs would begin as soon as Oct. 8 and that the actual number of workers affected likely would be lower than the number it provided in a notice filed with the state.

The move comes after Stellantis cut one of two daily production shifts at the plant in July for what it said then would be a temporary reduction in output. The automaker is in the midst of a global cost-cutting drive under CEO Carlos Tavares.

Warren Truck, located just north of Detroit, will move to one shift for general assembly, though "other operations within the plant will remain on two shifts to support Jeep Wagoneer production," Stellantis said. Warren Truck has around 3,900 employees, about 3,700 of whom are represented by the UAW.

Full-time UAW-represented workers who are laid off indefinitely will receive a year of supplemental unemployment benefits paid by the company, a year of transition assistance and two years of health care coverage. Employees also could be eligible for state unemployment benefits.

The Ram Classic, which dates to 2009, is the truck brand's previous-generation pickup, and remained in the lineup as a lower-priced alternative to the redesigned model that arrived in 2019. Ram is discontinuing the Classic as it freshens its current generation of pickups.

"The Ram 1500 Classic has been a great entry point pickup for Ram, and the Tradesman model has well represented the needs of commercial truck customers for years," the company said in a statement. "We introduced the new 2025 Ram 1500 Tradesman with incredible value and content."