General Motors trims over 200 white-collar roles amid restructuring, even as profits surge

The latest layoffs at GM underscore the broader industry trend of balancing innovation investment with cost control as automakers navigate an uneven transition toward electrification.

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General Motors (GM) has laid off over 200 salaried employees, primarily Computer-Aided Design (CAD) engineers, as part of its ongoing restructuring to streamline operations and improve profitability, according to a report by Times of India.

The layoffs, carried out on Friday at GM’s global technical campus in Warren, Michigan, the United States, come just days after the Detroit-based automaker raised its 2025 financial guidance following strong third-quarter earnings.

According to company sources cited in the report, affected employees were informed via Microsoft Teams calls that their roles were being eliminated due to “business conditions” rather than performance-related issues.

In a statement, GM said that the move was part of an effort to refocus its design engineering division on core competencies.

“We are restructuring our design engineering team to strengthen our core architectural design engineering capabilities. As a result, a number of CAD execution roles have been eliminated. We recognise the efforts and accomplishments of the impacted team members, and we thank them for their contributions,” the company added.

The job cuts, first reported by Bloomberg, extend GM’s ongoing white-collar workforce reductions. The company’s US salaried headcount has already fallen from 53,000 in 2023 to about 50,000 by the end of last year, as the automaker continues to review and eliminate roles that it considers non-essential for future operations.

Layoffs follow strong financial performance

The timing of the cuts comes as GM posted one of its strongest earnings performances in recent years. The automaker’s shares jumped 15 per cent following the release of its third-quarter results last week — its second-best single-day performance since emerging from bankruptcy in 2009. GM’s stock has surged over 29 per cent this year, reaching new 52-week highs.

The company also raised its profit outlook for 2025, attributing the upward revision to easing tariff pressures and narrowing losses in its electric vehicle (EV) business.

However, GM continues to face financial headwinds, including $1.1 billion in profit hits from tariff-related costs and $1.6 billion in charges linked to the scaling back of its EV expansion plans.

Industry-wide recalibration

GM’s decision follows similar moves across the automotive sector as carmakers adapt to changing market dynamics, slower EV adoption and evolving policy environments.

Earlier this week, EV startup Rivian announced plans to cut about 600 jobs — roughly 4.5 per cent of its workforce — citing cost pressures and weaker-than-expected demand following the expiration of the $7,500 federal EV tax credit.

The latest layoffs at GM underscore the broader industry trend of balancing innovation investment with cost control as automakers navigate an uneven transition toward electrification.