GM Restructures IT Workforce, Cutting 500-600 Roles While Hiring for AI and Specialized Positions

General Motors laid off about 500 to 600 employees this week in a sweeping global shakeup of its IT workforce. The cuts, which occurred Monday, affected largely IT workers located in Michigan, Texas and other locations around the globe. Many of the affected employees learned their fate during brief meetings that some workers described as cold and scripted.

“No appreciation or empathy. No questions. Nothing,” one laid-off employee who spent more than a decade at GM told CNBC. A veteran programmer and data scientist who lost their job told CNBC: “They’re going to push AI for everyday work and everything else.

I’ve seen it firsthand. It can make you much more productive, as a programmer. ” Workers inside the company said they had spent months being encouraged to use AI tools more heavily in their day-to-day work before the layoffs hit Monday.

Artificial intelligence played a role in the restructuring, New York Post reported, though it was not the sole reason behind the cuts. The layoffs were part of a broader global workforce review and were unrelated to return-to-office mandates, according to people familiar with the matter.

A GM spokesperson told The Post: “GM is transforming its Information Technology organization to better position the company for the future.

As part of that work, we have made the difficult decision to eliminate certain roles globally. ” The cuts are part of restructuring GM's information technology operations as the company seeks workers with more specialized skill sets including expertise in AI. Not every employee was notified in a brief virtual meeting.

Some workers had direct conversations with managers depending on team size and location. Some affected workers were remote employees, though the cuts stretched across multiple countries. The layoffs affected workers across a broad range of seniority levels.

According to severance documents reviewed by CNBC, employees with one to four years at GM will receive two months of severance pay, while workers with 12 years or more will receive six months’ worth of severance pay. Affected workers were also offered lump-sum healthcare payments ranging from $2,000 to $6,000. Affected workers were offered mental health services and career-placement assistance.

Unused vacation and sick time was forfeited unless protected under state law. Employees were instructed to return company equipment and, in some cases, company vehicles. Even after this week’s cuts, GM was still advertising roughly 80 open IT positions on Tuesday.

The open IT positions included jobs tied to AI, autonomous vehicles and motorsports.