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Just a few weeks ago, automakers were celebrating a healthy third quarter for electric vehicle sales. General Motors was looking particularly flush, with EV sales up 104 percent for the year to date compared to the first nine months of 2024. But the strong EV sales in Q3 were seemingly due to the imminent end of the federal tax credit that expired at the end of September, with many consumers buying a car sooner than planned to take advantage of the $7,500 incentive.

The Trump administration has been altering the regulatory environment in other ways to discourage clean technologies, canceling infrastructure initiatives and turning a blind eye to pollution. On top of that, the impact of the president’s chaotic trade war has driven up prices and is cooling demand. Two weeks ago, GM told investors that things are looking so bad that it will take a $1.6 billion hit to its bank accounts as it realigns manufacturing capacity going forward.

Now we can see some of the impact of that realignment. According to The Detroit News, 1,200 workers are being laid off at GM’s EV-building Hamtramck Assembly Center near Detroit, which will move from two shifts a day to just one in early January.

Another 550 workers are being laid off at the Ultium Cells battery plant in Ohio; this is a joint venture with LG Chem that previously was briefly occupied by the Trump-promoted Lordstown startup before it collapsed and the site was returned to GM. This plant will also stop production on January 5 until at least May.

Another 850 workers at the Ultium Cells plant in Ohio will be temporarily laid off, as will 700 more at a second Ultium Cells factory in Tennessee.

“During the temporary pause, Ultium Cells plans to make upgrades to both facilities to provide greater flexibility,” GM said in a statement to the Detroit News. “Ultium Cells will continue to evaluate and adapt production plans based on evolving market needs.”

GM also recently shut down its BrightDrop brand, which made electric delivery vans, blaming weak demand. And the automaker has also laid off IT workers in Georgia and staff from its Warren Technical Center in Michigan.