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OVER 4,000 FACTORY WORKERS LAID OFF AS TRUMP TARIFFS SPARK ECONOMIC
CHAOS
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Alexis Sterling
April 7, 2025
Nation of Change
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_ A wave of mass layoffs across the U.S. exposes the real cost of
Trump’s trade war, as union leaders and lawmakers warn of deepening
instability in American manufacturing _
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More than 4,000 American manufacturing workers lost their jobs this
week, the latest evidence of mounting economic instability tied to
former President Donald Trump’s tariff policies. Congressman Ro
Khanna and labor leaders are raising urgent concerns as layoffs sweep
across the industrial sector, hitting plants in more than a dozen
states and leaving thousands of union workers without employment or
clear prospects.
Automaker Stellantis announced Thursday that it would temporarily lay
off 900 workers in the United States due to production disruptions at
its Canadian and Mexican facilities—disruptions directly linked to
recently announced tariffs. The affected employees work at five
Midwest plants: the Warren Stamping and Sterling Stamping plants in
Michigan, and the Indiana Transmission Plant, Kokomo Transmission
Plant, and Kokomo Casting Plant in Indiana.
“These are actions that we do not take lightly, but they are
necessary given the current market dynamics,” Stellantis’ Chief
Operating Officer for the Americas Antonio Filosa said in a memo to
North American employees. “We understand that the current
environment creates uncertainty. Be assured that we are very engaged
with all of our key stakeholders, including top government leaders,
unions, suppliers and dealers in the US, Canada, and Mexico, as we
work to manage and adapt to these changes.”
Most of the workers affected by these layoffs will initially retain
pay due to protections in their union contracts. However, union
officials warn that those protections are limited and could erode if
the production shutdowns extend over time. Stellantis’s Windsor,
Ontario plant, which employs 4,500 hourly workers, will be closed for
two weeks. Its Toluca, Mexico plant will be closed through the end of
April, affecting 2,400 workers.
“Stellantis continues to play games with workers’ lives,” United
Auto Workers union president Sean Fain said in response. “These
layoffs are a completely unnecessary choice that the company is
making. It’s more of the same, and everything that’s wrong with
our broken trade system. Companies like Stellantis use workers as
collateral damage to pay the price for management’s poor decisions,
and it’s unacceptable.”
Unifor, the union representing autoworkers in Canada, echoed those
concerns. “Unifor warned that U.S. tariffs would hurt autoworkers
almost immediately and in this case the layoffs were announced before
the auto tariff even came into effect,” said Unifor President Lana
Payne. “Trump is about to learn how interconnected the North
American production system is the hard way, with autoworkers paying
the price for that lesson.”
The Stellantis layoffs are just one example in a wider economic
unraveling that unfolded across the U.S. this week. “This week,”
wrote Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) in a social media post Saturday, “19
factories had mass layoffs, 15 closed, and 4,134 factory workers
across America lost their jobs. Cleveland-Cliffs laid off 1,200
workers in Michigan and Minnesota as they deal with the impact of
Trump’s tariffs on steel and auto imports.”
Khanna, a prominent advocate for reshoring and reindustrialization,
has warned repeatedly that U.S. manufacturing remains vulnerable to
trade shocks and tariff volatility. He cited a string of layoffs
across multiple sectors and states in a recent online thread, painting
a grim portrait of an economy in which industrial workers are paying
the price for policy missteps.
This week, 19 factories had mass layoffs, 15 closed, and 4,134 factory
workers across America lost their jobs. Cleveland-Cliffs laid off
1,200 workers in Michigan and Minnesota as they deal with the impact
of Trump’s tariffs on steel and auto imports.
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— Rep. Ro Khanna (@RepRoKhanna) April 5, 2025
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At Cleveland-Cliffs, union representatives described the mood as one
of deep anxiety and confusion. “Chaos. You know? A lot of questions.
You’ve got a lot of people who worked there a long time that are
potentially losing their job,” said Bill Wilhelm, a servicing
representative and editor with UAW Local 600, speaking to WXYZ-Channel
7 in Detroit.
The UAW also warned that its layoff support fund is limited, and
alternative employment opportunities are scarce. “Our first concern
will be to look around at all the companies where we have members and
see if we can find jobs,” said UAW Local 600 First Vice President
Mark DePaoli. “I mean, jobs are going to be the key. We need jobs
and currently at this time, the majority of the companies that we work
with and represent our members at are not hiring.”
Other companies initiating layoffs this week include poultry
distributor Perdue Farms, which cut 433 jobs in Tennessee, and Del
Monte Foods, which eliminated 378 positions in California. John Deere
laid off 9 employees in Iowa, with prior layoffs already numbering in
the thousands. Semiconductor manufacturer Summit Interconnect shut
down operations in Santa Ana, California, resulting in 74 job losses.
Mass layoffs also hit smaller manufacturers in Kentucky, Pennsylvania,
Maryland, Washington, Texas, and Massachusetts. In total, more than 25
companies laid off workers this week alone, affecting nearly every
region of the country.
Economists warn that the tariff-related job losses are only part of
the problem. Axios reporter Ben Berkowitz wrote Saturday that “when
everything gets more expensive everywhere because of tariffs, that
starts a cycle for businesses, too — one that might end with
layoffs, bankruptcies, and higher prices for the survivors’
customers.” He added: “The cycle is just starting now, but the
pain is immediate.”
Berkowitz pointed to the performance of the Russell 2000 index—a key
gauge of small-cap U.S. companies—as a barometer for business
health. The index is down nearly 20% this year, reflecting widespread
concern about the future of domestic enterprise. “The market is like
a real time poll … this is going to impact all businesses in one way
or another undoubtedly,” wrote Ken Mahoney of Mahoney Asset
Management.
Les Leopold, executive director of the Labor Institute, has long
criticized both parties for failing to address systemic causes of mass
layoffs, including Wall Street speculation and corporate stock
buybacks. While he applauded Khanna’s recent statements, he
questioned why more Democrats have not taken stronger action. “What
do the progressive Democrats have to say about the tens of thousands
of mass layoffs that take place each month? Radio silence,” he told
_Common Dreams_. “It would be useful if they had a policy that
addressed Wall Street induced mass layoffs rather than just opposing
tariffs, but I wouldn’t bet on that.”
In a separate column, Leopold argued that Democrats need to confront
the political implications of these economic disruptions more
forcefully. “Democrats should take a page from Trump and put job
protection on the top of their agenda. As tariffs bite and cause job
destruction, the Democrats should show up and support those laid-off
workers.” Instead of simply labeling the tariffs “insane,”
Leopold wrote, “Democrats should call them job-killing tariffs. As
prices rise, they can blame Trump for that as well.”
“Imagine if federal worker unions and Democratic Party officials
showed up at the plant gate of a company that was about to close its
doors to finance hefty stock buybacks for its billionaire owners,”
he continued. “A show of support for their fellow layoff victims and
a unity message aimed at stopping billionaire job destruction would be
simple to craft and easy to share. It would be news.”
“Why aren’t the Democrats doing this?” he asked.
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* Trump's Trade Wars; Tariff-Related Layoffs; US Auto Workers;
Stellantis;
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