GM to Lay Off 1,900 More Workers

By TOM KRISHER

DETROIT -- General Motors(GM) said it plans to lay off another 1,900 factory workers at parts stamping, engine and transmission factories in North America as it cuts expenses to deal with a worsening cash crisis.

The nation's largest automaker said in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday that the layoffs are a result of declining sales.

GM announced a $2.5 billion third-quarter loss on Friday and said it may run out of cash before the end of 2008.

The 1,900 additional layoffs will come in the first quarter of next year.

Spokesman Tony Sapienza said the cuts are in addition to 3,600 factory layoffs announced on Friday, bringing the total announced in the past week to 5,500.

Sapienza would not say which plants would be affected by the new round of layoffs. GM has 26 powertrain and 22 stamping plants in North America.

The layoffs will be indefinite, he said, but there will be no plant closures.

GM also filed a notice with the state of Michigan saying it would lay off 650 factory workers and another 52 salaried employees at its Orion Township, Mich., assembly plant starting Jan. 23. Sapienza said those layoffs are part of the 3,600 announced Friday.

The Orion plant makes the Chevrolet Malibu and Pontiac G6 sedans, which Sapienza said are selling well but have fallen victim to the overall U.S. market decline.

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