RALEIGH, N.C. – Truck manufacturer Freightliner LLC said Friday it would lay off up to 1,180 workers at its assembly plant north of Charlotte because of falling orders.
Freightliner, a unit of DaimlerChrysler AG, said the job eliminations were necessary because buyers have been hesitant to purchase trucks equipped with new and expensive technology to curb diesel exhaust emissions. New standards governing diesel emissions in the U.S. and Canada took effect Jan. 1.
The layoffs will take place April 1 at the plant in Cleveland, about an hour north of Charlotte. The plant currently has more than 4,000 workers and is the largest employer in Rowan County. The company said the plant will scale back from three shifts to two, and the potential to rehire the laid off workers will depend in part on whether customer demand improves.
Portland, Ore.-based Freightliner, North America's leading medium- and heavy-duty truck manufacturer, said in December there would be a series of production rate adjustments at its plants during the first quarter of 2007. It said those moves could affect more than 4,000 workers.
Plant workers are organized by the United Auto Workers. A person answering the phone at the UAW's local office inside the Cleveland plant referred calls the local's president, who didn't immediately return a message seeking comment.
The UAW local's website says the plant produces more than 200 heavy-duty trucks a day, including the Columbia, Century Class and Argosy models.
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