In an effort to prevent layoffs during a time when FCA’s plants are shut down and car demand is weak due to the coronavirus, CEO Mike Manley has sent an email to employees outlining salary cuts. Most salaried employees will see a 20 percent deferment, Manley himself will take a 50 percent cut, and the Board of Directors will take no compensation for the rest of 2020.
After thanking employees for their support, pointing out that FCA has been working to create a safe workspace for employees, and mourning the loss and health struggles of workers within the company, Manley gets to the pay cuts set to start on April 1. I‘ve put the important bits in bold:
Protecting the financial health of the company is everyone’s responsibility and naturally starts with myself and the leadership of FCA. So, to help achieve this and to avoid the layoff of any permanent employees for the coming quarter, starting April 1 for the next three months I will take a 50% cut in my salary and the Group Executive Council (GEC) will all take a 30% cut. We will also ask most global salaried employees not impacted by local downtime plans to take a temporary 20% salary deferment as part of this shared sacrifice. The process will vary by country and agreements may be required. Further, our Chairman John Elkann and our Board of Directors have unanimously agreed to forgo their remaining 2020 compensation.
This comes after General Motors announced a 20 percent pay deferment for its employees and after FCA laid off roughly 2,000 contract employees.
Here’s a look at the full letter from Manley.
Update March 30, 2020 6:42 P.M.: FCA told Jalopnik via email that salary deferment is for “all Mid-Level Professional and above employees for an initial period of three months.”