The Latest Round of Carnage at American Automakers

Big Three automaker GM had its own Black Tuesday this week. According to this article, the company laid off 500 white-collar workers across 30 US locations -- its second round of layoffs in this still-young year. This came after last week’s announcement that GM is offering to buy out all 113,000 of its hourly workers. I heard on the radio Wednesday morning that GM had taxis lined up outside to take people home, as the pink-slipped had to turn in their company cars.

Against the backdrop of union troubles and the potential bankruptcy of former parts division Delphi, there’s lots of speculation that GM, one of the biggest companies in the world, will file for bankruptcy itself. And the other two members of the Big Three, Ford and Chrysler, are struggling with layoffs and rising costs as well. Both companies will make their execs pay more for healthcare to stem the tide.

There’s no doubt the American auto industry is in trouble and has been for a while -- for a multitude of reasons. So where does that leave thousands of stranded autoworkers?

This Monster article talks about how auto jobs are moving from Motown to the South, where labor is cheaper. Workers can look to parts suppliers or even work with their union to find a new career direction.

So if you drove to work Tuesday in a Chevy and came home in a cab or were hit by an earlier layoff, there’s help available -- including here at Monster.

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