Chrysler to cut 1,096 jobs in Belvidere, Ill.
Chrysler to cut 1,096 jobs in Belvidere, Ill.
Automotive News | January 3, 2008 - 11:37 am EST
Chrysler will eliminate 1,096 jobs next month at its assembly plant in Belvidere, Ill., a company spokeswoman said today.
The job cuts have been expected since CEO Bob Nardelli said Nov. 1 that Chrysler would eliminate up to 10,000 jobs and four vehicle models from its lineup.
Company spokeswoman Michele Tinson said the layoffs would be effective in late February.
The plant’s third shift will be eliminated, leaving Belvidere with two eight-hour shifts, Tinson wouldn’t say how much vehicle output at the plant would decline.
Belvidere makes the Dodge Caliber small car and the Jeep Compass and Jeep Patriot crossovers.
The Jeep Compass and Patriot went on sale for the 2007 model year. They are the two lowest-selling models in the Jeep lineup. Through the first 11 months of 2007, Chrysler sold 35,447 Jeep Patriots and 36,196 Jeep Compass crossovers.
The Dodge Caliber was the No. 2 seller in the Dodge car lineup through the first 11 months of 2007. The company sold 92,228 Calibers in that time, up 11.4 percent from the same period in 2006, according to the Automotive News Data Center.
