Stellantis Offers Buyouts to Half of Non-Union Employees

The Stellantis company, which was created in 2021 as a result of the merger between Fiat Chrysler and PSA Peugeot of France, is offering severance packages to half of its salaried, non-union U.S. employees in an effort to protect its operations and the company amid challenging market conditions.

The separations would come in the form of buyouts and early retirement, and employees would need at least five years with the company to be eligible. The company said the buyouts would help it transition to electric vehicles, an expensive and drawn-out process. In addition, the six-week United Auto Workers strike against the Big Three manufacturers this fall cost Stellantis $795 million, the automaker said on Oct. 31, offsetting some of the $12 billion in net income it raked in during the first half of 2023.

The now Netherlands-based Stellantis owns Jeep, Ram, Dodge and Chrysler. Depending on tenure, workers would get from three months to a year of base pay. About 12,700 workers in the U.S. are salaried and not part of a union, leaving 6,400 who could receive the offer. Those taking Stellantis up on its offer will leave by year’s end. They have until Dec. 8 to mull it over. The UAW reached agreements with Stellantis, GM and Ford at the end of October and is in the process of voting on the tentative deal, according to The Wall Street Journal.

The three automakers were cutting salaried staff months before the UAW strike, however, with General Motors cutting about 500 positions last February, and Ford offering buyouts as well. For Stellantis, the move marks its second set of buyouts this year, on top of an April offering to 2,500 salaried workers. In addition, Stellantis offered white-collar buyouts a year ago as well, The Wall Street Journal reported.