Following news from the US that Honda and Nissan has furloughed thousands of employees, it’s now the turn of Volkswagen to lay off workers at its US assembly plant in Tennessee. According to Reuters, 1,500 workers will be affected by this, starting from April 11.
VW said the temporary emergency furloughs for its production and maintenance workers at Chattanooga are expected to last no more than four weeks. The “primary objective is to protect the financial health of Volkswagen for the benefit of our team as we address the emerging and ongoing impacts of the Covid-19,” it said.
The German carmaker said employees and production contractors at the Tennessee plant have to date received full wages and benefits during the shutdown that started on March 21.
Earlier this week, Honda said it employs 18,400 workers across its US plants in Alabama, Indiana and Ohio, and would guarantee salaries until April 12, having suspended operations on March 23. The plants will be idle till May 1. Nissan said it has temporarily laid off about 10,000 hourly workers from April 6.
Carmakers are hurting in the world’s second biggest car market, which is currently facing the full wrath of the coronavirus. Some states have barred dealers from selling new cars while stay-at-home orders are in place, pretty much like how it is here with our movement control order.
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