Electric Vehicle makers Rivian Automotive Inc. is planning to lay off hundreds of its workers, according to information from people familiar with the matter. The company wants to trim its workforce in those areas where it has grown too quickly.
More on the layoff
The cuts in the workforce will be targeted at those in the nonmanufacturing departments, including teams with duplicative roles and functions, according to people who said that the matter is still confidential and requested not to be identified. The informed sources said layoff actions might be announced in the coming weeks.
Rivian, which has 14000+ employees, could target an overall workforce reduction of around 5%. The layoffs are at a planning stage, and nothing is final. Rivian Automotive operates in Illinois, Michigan, and California.
Rivian did not comment immediately on this issue.
To support its ramped-up production, the company doubled its headcounts in the past year, which they now are pulling back. Rivian makes electric SUVs, pickups, and delivery vans. Last year November, it came out with one of the biggest IPO in the US to emerge as the primary challenger to the market leaders in the EV segment Tesla Inc.
Global supply chain snags and shortage of parts made Rivian grapple with the situation, causing it to stumble along the way. Automakers face broader obstacles as sales of electric and other vehicles have softened demand as consumers get put off by high sticker prices.
Rivian shares have crashed 69% in 2022 through close on Friday.
Rivian, based out of Irvine, California, is in the queue to join other organizations across the corporate US that are pruning their operations in the wake of the economic slowdown. Tesla is cutting 10% of its salaried staff, protecting the headcounts in the manufacturing division, with CEO Elon Musk saying that recession seems inevitable.
Rivian lost nearly $17 billion in cash and had restricted cash on its balance sheet to weather the storm by the end of March. The fledgling Electric Vehicle manufacturer is backed by investors that include Ford Motor Co., and Amazon.com Inc. Rivian has a contract to build 100,000 delivery vans driven by battery-electric by the end of 2030 for Amazon.
