NewsNation published June 23, 2026: GM lays off 1,000 workers and adds robots to its assembly line. General Motors has cut 1,000 jobs at its Detroit facility, and it later installed about 50 robots on the assembly line. GM has faced backlash over this, but the company says there's more to it than replacing humans. NewsNation's Nick Smith reports.
NewsNation
written by Josie Fischels
Monday June 22, 2026
General Motors has laid off more than 1,000 jobs at its Factory ZERO plant in Detroit and added 50 new robots on the assembly line.
The move has drawn sharp criticism from the United Auto Workers union.
The machines, called “cobots,” or collaborative robots, are now working alongside the employees who remain at the plant. They help attach body panels to vehicles as they move down the line. According to GM Authority, they use artificial intelligence to anticipate maintenance needs and detect production issues early.
GM says the cobots are to improve safety.
“We’ve been installing cobots across our manufacturing footprint as part of a broader push to bring more advanced technology into our operations,” company spokesperson Kevin Kelly said in a statement. “At Factory ZERO, we are implementing them alongside our team, helping improve safety and ergonomics, while keeping our operations flexible and competitive.”
GM also says the lay-offs are temporary, though it hasn’t said when — or if — the laid-off workers will be brought back. A spokesperson for GM also tells NewsNation the layoffs are “not related to the addition of the cobots.”
“Our manpower is being taken away from us,” UAW Local 22 president James Cotton told Crain’s Detroit Business. He added that the union is “disgusted” that cobots are now in the plant.
The union has filed grievances, and Cotton says he also has safety concerns about robots working next to people.
At a union convention in Detroit, national UAW President Shawn Fain said workers are “in a fight for humanity” and that AI shouldn’t be used to keep gains away from the people doing the work.
GM has been open about its heavier push into automation for months, including a deal with NVIDIA on factory robotics. At an event last year, CEO Mary Barra said that AI lets GM “build smarter vehicles while empowering our workforce to focus on craftsmanship.”
GM isn’t alone — according to Autoblog, Toyota is rolling out humanoid robots at its RAV4 plant in Canada. BMW is also expanding its humanoid robot pilot program.
*******GM in Canada*******
CBC News Toronto published Jan 7, 2026: As GM layoffs loom, local union rep says national leaders must step up. Unifor national isn't doing enough to protect jobs in Canada's auto industry in the face of U.S. tariffs, says the president of Unifor Local 222. CBC’s Christian D'Avino sat down with Jeff Gray ahead of layoffs later this month.
CBC
written by Christian D'Avino and Rochelle Raveendran
Thursday January 29, 2026
The day Oshawa, Ont., autoworkers have dreaded for months has arrived, as GM Canada is poised to cut a shift at the city’s plant, costing over a thousand workers their jobs.
Up to 1,200 workers throughout the auto supply chain are expected to complete their final shift on Friday as the company scales back its Canadian operations, according to the union president who represents them.
GM Canada confirmed Thursday approximately 500 of those people are its employees.
“We did everything we could … we’ve made our arguments to General Motors,” said Jeff Gray, Unifor Local 222 president, on Wednesday.
GM is cutting one of three shifts at the plant, which ends at 6:30 a.m. Seniority rules will apply, Gray said — meaning high-seniority members will be bumped to the remaining shifts, while lower-seniority members across all three shifts will lose their jobs.
Gray said these workers will be left in a “heartbreaking” position as they walk into their shift just like any other day, while knowing they won’t have a job next week.
“You feel very nervous and anxious that you can continue to provide a living for yourself and your family,” said Gray.
GM issued a statement Thursday saying it has worked with the union to provide supports for the workers who are being laid off, including what it calls "comprehensive separation packages, retirement support and other benefits."
Spokesperson Ariane Souza Pereira said the plant is going back to two shifts while "continuing preparations to build the next generation of gas‑powered full‑size pickups."
Meanwhile, Ontario Premier Doug Ford said workers who have been laid off will get opportunities in other sectors, including defence and life sciences.
GM caving to Trump, national union says
The Detroit-based automotive manufacturer said it was cutting a shift at the plant in May. That announcement came a month after U.S. President Donald Trump announced tariffs targeting the auto sector.
At the time, spokesperson Jennifer Wright told CBC Toronto that “forecasted demand and the evolving trade environment” were behind the cut.
GM Canada's latest statement doesn't mention tariffs. Still, Unifor National President Lana Payne said GM “has made a clear decision to cave to Donald Trump” in a statement on Thursday.
She said GM is making Oshawa workers “pay for that appeasement with their jobs.”
While GM cuts a shift in Oshawa, the company is adding 250 temporary workers to its plant in Fort Wayne, Ind. Both the Oshawa and Fort Wayne plants build the Chevrolet Silverado.
Layoffs at the Oshawa plant were initially slated to take place in November, but were delayed to the end January.
That delay gave union officials more time to lobby the federal government to secure a trade deal with the United States and push for GM to reverse its shift reduction.
In Thursday's statement, Unifor said it gave GM a "viable plan" to keep the third shift until the union and GM entered contract negotiations this fall — but GM rejected this plan.
When the shift cut was first announced, Unifor said around 2,000 workers would be laid off. Gray said that number has since gone down to between 1,100 and 1,200 workers, due to work done by in-plant representation.
But earlier this month, Gray called on national union leaders to step up their support for workers, saying auto jobs across the province are “disappearing.”
“From the eyes of the membership, the pushback hasn't been enough,” he told CBC Radio’s Metro Morning.
Speaking Wednesday, Gray said the local union will continue to advocate on behalf of workers to bring more jobs to Oshawa.
He said plans are underway to create programming that retrains autoworkers who have been laid off, hosted in the past in Oshawa and other parts of Ontario at locations known as action centres.
This programming may include sessions on resume writing skills and basic computer skills, he said.
“We will do everything in our power to make sure that is up and running as fast as possible and help members through the transition,” Gray said.
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