GreenPower reducing workforce in South Charleston, citing cost increases from new tariffs

SOUTH CHARLESTON, W.Va. (WCHS) — An auto manufacturing company announced plans to reduce its workforce in Kanawha County, citing new tariffs as major obstacles for meeting contractual agreements.

GreenPower Motor Company sent a letter to multiple employees last week, stating “the imposition of new tariffs has significantly increased our operational costs and disrupted our ability to build and deliver buses in a timely manner.”

The letter said the financial impact will result in layoffs despite “best efforts to manage these challenges through cost-cutting and restructuring.”

The Canadian-based company announced plans to produce zero-emission, all-electric school buses at a South Charleston facility in early 2022. At the time, the operation was expected to generate 200 new jobs and create as many as 900 positions within two years.

The company launched a pilot project for Cabell, Kanawha and Mercer counties later in 2022. Boone, Clay, Wirt and Wyoming counties were next in line thanks to $2 million in funding from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Earlier this year, the company worked through a federal freeze of EPA grants along with dealer contract setbacks leading to delays.

Last week’s letter said the company evaluated multiple options, including reallocating resources, making internal transfers and offering voluntary separations, but none of those avenues would offset the financial burden.

“This is not a reflection of your performance, but rather an unfortunate consequence of external economic forces,” the letter said.

Eyewitness News reached out to the company for more information. A statement from GreenPower did not specify the number of employees affected, but it did detail “staggering” issues school bus manufacturers are facing:

Today, GreenPower Motor Company had to make a very difficult decision to pause manufacturing and layoff a portion of its workforce at its manufacturing facility in South Charleston, West Virginia. The imposition of new tariffs has significantly increased GreenPower’s operational costs and disrupted the company’s ability to build and deliver buses in a timely manner. Despite best efforts to manage these challenges through cost-cutting and restructuring, the financial impact has been too severe to sustain current workforce levels. This decision was not made lightly. GreenPower carefully evaluated all options, including reallocation of resources, voluntary separations and internal transfers. Unfortunately, none of these measures could fully offset the economic burden GreenPower is facing due to the tariffs.The recent implementation of trade tariffs is causing much harm to the entire school bus manufacturing sector. This business instability and the significantly increased costs impacts all school bus manufactures whether they are producing electric, diesel, propane or gas school buses. The implications are staggering.If a school bus manufacturer were able to pass these costs on to a school district, it would amount to a tax on the government as the cost would be paid by either local, state or federal government funding. But a school bus original equipment manufacturer (OEM) cannot pass on the increased cost since there are state contracts in place for the purchase of school buses. The new tariffs leave no pathway for a school bus OEM to build vehicles in the United States and it completely halts GreenPower’s efforts to on-shore and friend-shore the supply chain, especially non-Chinese battery cells and components.GreenPower is committed to supporting its employees during this transition. Employees will receive assistance from GreenPower with any questions regarding unemployment benefits or references.

The company announced final paychecks will be delivered at the end of the month for those affected by the layoffs.

GreenPower noted affected employees will receive assistance with attaining unemployment or professional references.