Chrysler announced that as of Friday, it will shut down its 30 manufacturing plants for at least a month. The company blames lower demand for its vehicles in the tightening consumer credit market. Chrysler is the last of the big three automakers to announce such a cutback; last week GM took approximately 250,000 vehicles out of production, temporarily closing 20 factories. Ford added a week to its annual two-week shutdown.
Chrysler says dealers nationwide confirm that the market is strong in terms of consumer interest, but that dealerships are often "unable to close the deal" as prospective buyers are unable to obtain financing. The company estimates that sales volume has dropped 20-25% due to the lack of available consumer credit.
Affected employees will be eligible for state unemployment benefits and some benefits from the companies, but will not receive full pay during the layoff.
Tags: automakers layoffs 'plant shutdown' chrysler gm ford automakers
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