Post-pandemic, GM to reassign some workers to Tech Center
When workers return to offices, more will be headed to the General Motors Technical Center in Warren than were there prior to the onset of the pandemic.
As part of a restructuring plan announced this week, the automaker will shift the location of workers throughout southeast Michigan. Two divisions will have employees reassigned to the Tech Center, while some who have previously been based there will move to the company headquarters at the RenCen in Detroit.
A company spokesman outlined the moves in response to an inquiry from The Macomb Daily Thursday. They include:
• Customer Care and Aftersales team (white collar, not manufacturing) shifts from Grand Blanc to Warren.
• Some teams from the RenCen (primarily Product Marketing) shift from RenCen to Warren as a measure to “increase collaboration.”
• A group of newly hired tech workers (mainly in IT) will be moving to the RenCen in Detroit.
“The moves also reflect adapting to post-pandemic workplaces where the future will be more flexible. The moves will bring more employees and teams to the Global Technical Center in Warren. Some workers will shift to Warren from the global headquarters at the GM RenCen and a facility in Grand Blanc, while the company will also bring some new tech workers to the RenCen,” a statement from the company said.
The total worker head count will be unchanged.
What could impact the number of workers on site in Warren and at other locations is the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Since last March, workers who can work from home have been directed to do so by the state. That includes thousands of white collar automotive employees at GM and the other Big Three companies.
“We expect to start the process of bringing more people into our workplaces this summer (June-July.) We do not know exactly how it will look, post-pandemic – other than the fact that the future will be more flexible,” the company statement said.
The news was met with enthusiasm by local officials.
“I am very excited. It means the production center of General Motors - the main center of action and productivity — is in Warren. This is great news for Warren. It is great news for jobs in Warren, great news for the city, because there will be more building, and more expansion and more production. It is really exciting,” Warren Mayor Jim Fouts said, adding GM is building a lab at the tech center to study batteries for electric vehicles, which is also going to bring more jobs to the city.
“We are pleased to hear of GM plans to expand its workforce here in Macomb County. The Tech Center is a global epicenter for talent and innovation, and this announcement illustrates our position as a leader in future mobility,” Macomb County Executive Mark Hackel said in a statement provided to The Macomb Daily Thursday.
The moves come a little more than two years after GM eliminated nearly 1,300 jobs at the Tech Center as part of a restructuring that saw it shed 4,000 salaried positions globally.