General Motors (GM) has confirmed plans to temporarily pause production of its BrightDrop battery-electric commercial van in Ontario due to slow sales. Adding some kindling to the fire is the temporarily layoff of 1,200 plant workers at the CAMI Assembly Plant.
Per Reuters, GM said the factory shutdown is unrelated to the Trump administration's newly imposed auto tariffs. Instead, the Detroit-based automaker intends to to make "operational and employment adjustments to balance inventory and align production schedules with current demand."
The layoffs will begin on April 14 though workers will return next month for some limited production. Other workers are due back in October when BrightDrop production is scheduled to kick off for the 2026 model year. However, GM intends to limit BrightDrop production to a single shift, meaning the indefinite layoff of almost 500 employees, according to the Unifor union.
The plant will be retooled during the downtime, the automaker confirmed.
The BrightDrop commercial van's most well-known direct competitor is the Rivian-built Commercial Van, aka the Amazon delivery van. Rivian is now accepting new customer orders after being the exclusive supplier to Amazon for a few years.
[Related: Rivian, Ben & Jerry's join forces for new 'scoop trucks']
Meanwhile, in an official statement, GM says it "remains committed to the future of BrightDrop and the CAMI plant and will support employees through the transition. This adjustment is directly related to responding to market demand and re-balancing inventory. Production of BrightDrop and EV battery assembly will remain at CAMI."
Sales of the BrightDrop came to only 274 units in the first quarter of this year, though this is an improvement over the first quarter of 2024 by 18 vans.
Canadian government and union officials alike, some blaming Trump's tariffs, condemned GM's decision and vowed to continue fighting to protect workers, auto sector, and supplier network.
"[The production pause] is a crushing blow to hundreds of working families in Ingersoll and the surrounding region who depend on this plant," said Unifor National President, Lana Payne, in an official statement. "General Motors must do everything in its power to mitigate job loss during this downturn, and all levels of government must step up to support Canadian auto workers and Canadian-made products."
BrightDrop was launched in January 2021 as a commercial EV start-up and a wholly owned subsidy of GM. It officially became a part of GM in November 2023.
