Stellantis offering new round of voluntary buyouts to US salaried workers

By Nora Eckert and David Shepardson

DETROIT (Reuters) - Jeep-maker Stellantis said on Tuesday it is offering a new round of voluntary buyouts to its U.S. salaried workers, the latest in a series of cost-cutting measures CEO Carlos Tavares is placing on its American operations.

The Netherlands-based automaker laid off 400 U.S. salaried workers in March and last year twice offered buyouts to groups of thousands of U.S. workers.

Stellantis' backlog of inventory and weakened margins in the U.S. market have been a point of concern for Tavares in recent conversations with analysts.

"As Stellantis continues to address inflationary pressures and, importantly, provide consumers with affordable vehicles at the highest quality, we remain focused on taking the necessary actions to reduce our costs to protect the long term sustainability of the company. One of those actions is offering a voluntary separation package to U.S. employees in certain functions," a Stellantis spokeswoman said Tuesday.

More detailed information will be provided to eligible employees in mid-August, she added.

Automotive News earlier reported that buyouts were offered to Stellantis employees.

(Reporting by Nora Eckert and David Shepardson; Editing by Mark Porter and Nick Zieminski)