DTNA to Lay Off 30% of Workers at Heavy-Duty Plant in North Carolina
maps.google.comDaimler Trucks North America announced it will lay off an estimated 936 employees, or 30%, of the 3,100 workers at its Cleveland Truck Manufacturing Plant in Cleveland, North Carolina, where it manufactures heavy-duty Freightliner and Western Star trucks.
The workforce adjustment is “due to a sustained reduction in orders and a diminished build rate and it is considered temporary,” David Giroux, DTNA’s director of corporate communications, said in a statement.
DTNA is the market leader in U.S. Class 8 sales and had a 49.9% market share in November, WardsAuto.com reported.
Giroux said the reduction is effective March 5, but the affected employees’ last day of work is Jan. 8 as the company anticipates a softer truck market in 2016, “which will be somewhat below the very strong market of 2015.”
According to the statement, “Employees will receive payment in lieu of the notice period at each employee’s regular rate of pay, and employees are free to seek and accept other employment during the notice period without jeopardizing their entitlement to the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification period payment or benefits.”
DTNA’s decision follows Volvo Group’s similar one late last year for both its U.S. truck makers, Volvo Trucks North America and Mack Trucks. That action also was intended to match production with expected market declines this year.
Other truck makers did not respond to inquiries about the possibility of additional layoffs.
