Electric vehicle production is the first section of General Motors to take a hit after the automaker announced nearly $1 billion in losses stemming from a strike by the United Auto Workers union.
On a call with reporters, GM chief financial officer Paul Jacobson revealed that the company has been losing approximately $200 million per week during the strike, totaling around $800 million after the first month of striking, according to the Epoch Times.
A recent announcement that an additional 5,000 union workers would be stepping to the sidelines in Arlington, Texas — the site of GM’s largest plant — brings the total number of picketers to 45,000.
This came after GM gave its earning announcement for the third quarter of the fiscal year, noting that net income fell 3.7%. GM still took in $3.06 billion net income, however, with overall revenues rising 5.4% to $44.1 billion despite the strike.
Profit was down 16.9% year-over-year to $3.56 billion.
Although profits have remained massive, the big hit to earnings still caused CFO Jacobson to announce that the auto giant will put the brakes on electric vehicle production.
GM is “moderating the acceleration of EV production to protect our pricing, adjust to slower near-term growth in demand and implement engineering changes that will bolster profits,” Jacobson said. But he noted that electric vehicle production remains “as strong as ever.”
On the same media call, GM CEO Mary Barra also said that the company planned on reducing electric vehicle product spending while simultaneously slowing the launch of several models in order to cut costs.
Demands from GM’s union employees include a wage increase of more than 35%. The company has offered a 23% increase over a 4.5-year contract.
The autoworkers’ strike has garnered visits from several high-profile politicians including the president. Biden allegedly offered his support for striking autoworkers at the picket line for just 12 minutes, and he reportedly spoke to UAW members for less than 90 seconds.
Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) also made an appearance, as did President Trump. Trump decided to visit a non-union parts supplier in Michigan where current and former union workers had gathered.
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