“INVEST IN US”: UAW Slams Stellantis for Preparing Massive Pay Day for Wall Street While Thousands of Workers are Laid Off in Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, and Beyond
In a shocking move, Stellantis is preparing to spend billions of dollars on stock buybacks and dividends while autoworkers who build profitable vehicles are laid off and auto plants are underutilized across America.
At the company’s annual shareholder meeting in Amsterdam, the Stellantis Board of Directors has approved a $2.6 billion dollar dividend, while they consider an additional stock buyback of up to 10 % of the company’s stock, or $2.6 billion.
The UAW is calling on all allies of the working class to sign on to a petition demanding Stellantis invest in its workers, not just Wall Street.
“Two weeks ago, Stellantis said the sky was falling because of auto tariffs, and said they had to lay off workers, claiming they are losing money. But then all of a sudden, a miracle happened: they found billions of dollars, nearly half of last year’s profits, to pay to Wall Street!” said UAW President Shawn Fain. “This is everything that has been wrong with corporate America for decades. Instead of investing in the autoworkers and facilities that make this company run, Stellantis is putting Wall Street over Main Street. Stellantis could create thousands of good paying jobs in America in very short order by utilizing excess capacity in places like Toledo South Assembly in Ohio, Belvidere Assembly in Illinois, Mack, Warren, Trenton Engine in Michigan, and plants in Kokomo, Indiana. It’s time for Stellantis to stop looting the Rust Belt for short-sighted Wall Street jackpots. INVEST IN US!”
With $5 billion, Stellantis could reopen multiple plants, lower the price of vehicles, and regain their market share in the US auto market. Instead, the company is choosing to spend that money on Wall Street.
Some shareholders are pushing back as well on Stellantis’ $25 million payout for disgraced CEO Carlos Tavares. As part of the UAW’s Keep the Promise campaign, Tavares was ousted following his gross mismanagement of the company.
It’s time for Stellantis to get back on track building great vehicles in the US, using their unused capacity, and do right by the taxpayers, consumers, and autoworkers.
