GM has begun to notify hourly workers of layoffs at five plants in the US and Canada.
The carmaker has 2,700 positions available at other facilities.
GM is also providing severance and services to salaried employees facing layoffs or voluntary buyouts.

Last month, General Motors announced that it intended to idle five US and Canadian factories amid a shift in the auto industry away from passenger cars toward SUVs.

The carmaker has begun to notify the federal government of its layoff plans for the plants that won’t have “allocated” production — in other words, no new vehicles or parts to build once current production at the facilities in Michigan, Ohio, Maryland, and Canada winds down.

According to GM, a total of 2,800 hourly employees are affected. Of these, the automaker said in a statement, 1,100 have expressed interest in relocating to plants where GM needs more labor.

Read more: GM will stop building cars at 3 North American factories and cut its salaried workforce by 15% in 2019 as it shifts to electric and self-driving cars

“Strong US and Canadian economies enable us to provide these opportunities now as we position General Motors for long-term success,” GM CEO Mary Barra said in a statement.

“Our focus remains on providing interested employees options to transition including job opportunities at other GM plants,” Barra continued. “We remain committed to working with local government officials, our unions and each individual to find appropriate opportunities for them.”

GM has 2,700 positions available at factories in Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, and Tennessee.

The company also wants to shed thousands of salaried and contract staff — 15% altogether. Similar opportunities to relocate are being offered to them, as well as severance allocations and job-training services, GM said.

Business has been good in the auto industry for the past three years, as …read more

Source:: Business Insider

Democrats responded with fury on Friday night after a federal judge in Texas ruled that key provisions in the Affordable Care Act, otherwise known as “Obamacare,” were unconstitutional — rendering the entire law unconstitutional.
Some conservative groups praised the ruling, while other Republican lawmakers stayed silent.
The federal judge ruled the individual mandate was unconstitutional, and that because it is “essential to and inseverable from the remainder of the ACA,” the entire law is invalid.
Here are some initial reactions from lawmakers and organizations.

Democrats responded with fury on Friday night after a federal judge in Texas ruled that key provisions in the Affordable Care Act, or “Obamacare,” were unconstitutional — rendering the entire law unconstitutional.

Meanwhile in a tweet, President Donald Trump called for Congress to to pass a “STRONG” health care bill, and some conservative organizations and lawmakers praised the judge’s decision.

US District Judge Reed O’Connor in the Northern District of Texas sided with 19 states led by Texas who argued that the individual mandate — the requirement that everyone must have health insurance — was unconstitutional after lawmakers repealed the tax penalty for not having insurance. Fourteen states and the District of Columbia were arguing in favor of the law.

The Trump administration sided with the 19 states’ individual mandate argument, but also argued to keep some provisions of the bill, including Medicaid expansion and the health exchanges, according to Bloomberg.

The judge ruled the individual mandate was unconstitutional, and because it is “essential to and inseverable from the remainder of the ACA” the entire law is invalid.

The ruling could impact millions of Americans, including those with preexisting conditions. Since there is no injunction from the court, it is possible, one expert tweeted, that the law could stay in place while the ruling is appealed — and lawmakers like House Minority …read more

Source:: Business Insider