DETROIT -- General Motors Corp., in its largest wave of permanent job layoffs ever, said Thursday it will close 11 operations in four states by the end of the decade, idling about 29,000 workers.
Closing the assembly and metal fabricating plants in Michigan, Ohio, Missouri and Illinois will result in an annual savings of $500 million, GM Chairman Roger Smith said at a news conference at GM's headquarters.
Although it posted a $264 million profit for the third quarter of 1986, GM lost $338.5 million on its car and truck operations for that period.
GM's announcement, which was not unexpected, was described as devastating by one United Auto Workers official.
'This is causing families to break up and communities to go to hell,' said Joe Wilson, head of UAW Local 15, which represents 6,600 workers at GM's Fleetwood-Clark Assembly Plant in Detroit. 'At least give us some time to gather ourselves up ... to retrain the workers and discuss things.'
When asked whether any of the plant closings were still negotiable, Smith said, 'We're past that.'
GM President F. James McDonald indicated there might be further plant closings. 'I would not say this is the end of plant closings,' he said, but declined to elaborate.
The 11 operations earmarked for closing are the first phase of GM's reorganization and modernization program. Other assembly, engine, stamping and parts facilities are under consideration, GM said, adding that a decision regarding those operations would be made at a later date.
The operations GM said will be closed in the first phase are:
-- Fleetwood-Clark plant in Detroit: 6,600 employees, to be closed by the end of 1987.
-- Flint Body-Pontiac Assembly plants in Flint and Pontiac, Mich.: 4,500 employees, to be closed by the end of 1987.
-- Chevrolet-Pontiac-Canada plant in Norwood, Ohio: 4,000 employees, to be closed by mid-1988.
-- GM Truck & Bus Group's light truck assembly plant at St. Louis: 2,200 employees, to be closed in mid-1987.
-- BOC-Chicago Manufacturing plant at Willow Springs, Ill.: 2,900 employees. Production either to be phased out or moved to other stamping facilities over a period of time.
-- CPC-Hamilton-Fairfield plant in Ohio: 2,500 employees. Needed production will be moved to other plants.
-- BOC's Conner Stamping plant in Detroit. 700 employees. Needed future production will be placed in other stamping facilities.
GM said production at the three metal fabricating plants will be phased out beginning in 1987 and they are expected to be shut by 1990.
GM also announced cessation of partial production operations at two GM Truck & Bus Group plants in Pontiac and Flint:
-- Pontiac Central Plant: 1,600 employees in heavy-duty truck production and another 600 in transit bus assembly, to be closed by August 1988 and late spring 1987, respectively, depending on market demand.
-- Truck & Bus Flint No. 1 in Flint: 3,450 employees, to be closed by August 1987.
United Auto Workers Vice President Donald F. Ephlin, who heads the union's GM Department, reacted to the planned closings 'with regret,' saying the UAW would make every effort to have the affected workers recieve the assistance and negotiated benefits to which they are entitled.
'We naturally regret this decision,' Ephlin said, saying that while the closings reflect GM's business situation, they also 'reflect the continuing perilous state of America's most important manufacturing industry because of the inaction of our government in the whole area of trade and industrial policy.'
He said the UAW will establish a special task force to help displaced workers.
Ephlin pointed out that with the exception of the Norwood-Hamilton plants, the closures had been expected for several years because of GM's construction of major new facilites.
'Obviously, we're prepared to do whatever we can to save every single job,' Ephlin said.
