Nissan to cut jobs, shifts at Tennessee car plants

Nissan is slashing production at its U.S. plants and offering buyouts to factory workers there as part of the Japanese automaker’s urgent efforts to return to profitability.

The move is part of Nissan Motor Corp.’s plans, announced two months ago, to slash 9,000 jobs globally, including in China, after it racked up a quarterly loss due to sinking sales and ballooning inventory.

At Nissan’s plant in Smyrna, Tennessee, one production line will maintain two shifts, while the other line will consolidate to one shift, the company said.

The Smyrna plant makes Murano, Pathfinder and Rogue sport-utility vehicles and the Infiniti QX60 luxury model.

In the Canton plant in Mississippi, which makes the Altima sedan and Frontier pickup, Nissan is reducing the speed on one line and consolidating another.

In the Decherd plant in Tennessee, which makes engines, shift adjustments will be more gradual. Some will be maintained while others will be reduced by one shift, it said.

When it announced its recovery plan in November, Nissan didn’t give details on where the job cuts might come.

The workforce reduction of 9,000 people amounts to about 6% of its more than 133,000 global employees. The company also plans to slash its global production capacity by 20%.

Separately, Nissan and Japanese rival Honda Motor Co. are working to form a joint holding company to integrate their businesses, planned for 2026.

Nissan and Honda announced in March they will work together on electric vehicles. In August, they said that partnership was being broadened. They plan to have a “definitive agreement” by June.

Nissan is set to release its October-December financial results on Feb. 13. Nissan stocks jumped 2% in Tokyo trading after the reports about the U.S. plans surfaced.


(AP Photo Gene J. Puskar)