General Motors (G.M.) has announced plans to cut its labor costs by 20%. The methods it will use include layoffs, pay freezes and early retirement packages.
The moves, which include selling at least $2 billion in assets and borrowing as much as $3 billion, are expected to raise about $15 billion by the end of 2009, the chief executive Rick Wagoner said.
Mr. Wagoner said the automaker would stop providing health care coverage to salaried retirees at age 65, offer buyout and early retirement packages to reduce its salaried work force and freeze base pay for salaried employees through 2009.
In addition, G.M. executives will no longer receive discretionary cash bonuses.
"These are tough but necessary actions," Mr. Wagoner said, "and these, along with current cash and available credit lines will provide us with ample liquidity through 2009 even under conservative U.S. industry sales assumptions."
GM has already made considerable job cuts since 2006. This time they are targeting white-collar positions as Freep.com notes. A satirical Onion headline earlier this year read, "GM Introduces New 2008 Line Of Layoffs."
General Motors (G.M.) has 