NEWARK, Nov. 30 - General Motors announced on Tuesday that it was laying off nearly 1,000 factory workers at its Linden, N.J., truck plant and ending production of one of Chevrolet's best-known models, the Blazer.þþThe layoff, scheduled for early next year, was originally anticipated for summer 2005 but was pushed up because of sagging truck sales.þþÿWe certainly don't like doing this stuff,ÿ said a G.M. spokesman, Dan Flores. ÿBut we can't defy the laws of the marketplace.ÿþþThe Linden plant, which opened in 1937, had once been a crown jewel in the G.M. empire, a busy factory that cranked out Pontiacs, Buicks, Oldsmobiles and Chevys from the industrial lowlands south of Newark along the New Jersey Turnpike. In 1992, the plant was converted to make trucks for what was then a booming part of the automaker's business. þþBut as competition for the S.U.V. market tightened and Chevy began to lose out against other brands, the aging Linden plant became less vital. The two production shifts were cut back to one in 2002, and this year the assembly line was slowed down even further. Domestic sales of Blazers slipped by 30 percent so far in 2004 and showed no signs of recovering, Mr. Flores said, partly because G.M. developed newer, sleeker models like the GMC Envoy and Buick Rainier.þþÿYes, Blazer is a name with a lot of equity in it, and a lot of people recognize it,ÿ Mr. Flores said. ÿBut we can't keep producing it if the market doesn't want it.ÿþþOn Tuesday, the company told Linden employees that it would discontinue manufacturing Chevy Blazers and GMC Jimmys, the only remaining trucks made in Linden, in early 2005. The plant is the only one in the world to produce to those vehicles.þþG.M., however, cannot technically close the Linden plant because it was not among the plants that the United Auto Workers union agreed could be closed when G.M. and the union negotiated their last contract in 2003. The four-year contract protects the Linden plant through 2007, but the factory will essentially be idle, with no production and only a skeleton crew keeping the lights on.þþUnder the contract, laid-off workers receive about 70 percent of their salary for up to 48 weeks. After that, they will receive their full salary from G.M. through 2007 and can apply for work at other G.M. plants.þþSenator Jon S. Corzine of New Jersey said the decision to lay off the workers was a breach of faith.þþÿWe were given to understand that the plant would stay open at least through 2007,ÿ Mr. Corzine said in a statement issued on Tuesday. ÿThis is a bitter pill to swallow for workers in the midst of what should be a happy holiday season.ÿþþ
Source: NY Times
