Italian-American automaker Stellantis has drawn criticism for its unconventional approach to laying off over 400 employees in its engineering, software, and technology divisions across the United States. The manner in which the terminations were carried out has raised eyebrows and reignited discussions around appropriate layoff etiquette.
According to reports, Stellantis instructed employees to attend a mandatory remote work day on Friday, March 22, under the guise of “important operational meetings,” as quoted by Moneycontrol. In a notice sent the previous day, the carmaker stated, “We will be holding important operational meetings that require specific attention and participation. To ensure everyone can effectively participate, we have decided to implement a mandatory remote work day.”
Livemint could not independently verify this news development.
However, during the remote call, white-collar workers were informed that they were being laid off. “It was a mass firing of everybody that was on the call,” a mechanical engineer who lost their job during the call told Fox News. The engineer, who declined to be named, alleged that Stellantis is outsourcing jobs to India, Mexico, and Brazil, stating, “So they continue to push low-cost countries that are more efficient for the company and more profitable.”
In a statement to the Wall Street Journal, Stellantis, which owns brands like Jeep and Chrysler, acknowledged the layoffs, stating, “As the auto industry continues to face unprecedented uncertainties and heightened competitive pressures around the world, Stellantis continues to make the appropriate structural decisions across the enterprise to improve efficiency and optimize our cost structure.” The automaker also claimed that laid-off workers have been offered “a comprehensive separation package and transition assistance,” as quoted by CNBC.
The Stellantis layoffs have reignited discussions surrounding appropriate layoff etiquette, an issue that has been hotly debated in recent months. Last year, during Elon Musk’s takeover of Twitter, several employees discovered they had lost their jobs after being unable to log into their work email accounts. Similarly, Goldman Sachs faced backlash for conducting layoffs by emailing calendar invites for fake meetings at its New York headquarters, where employees were then informed of their termination.
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Published: 26 Mar 2024, 12:53 PM IST