As the number of COVID-19 cases skyrocket around the country, GM’s President, Mark Reuss, has expressed concern over both the economic toll and the human impact of the pandemic.
“I just worry about everybody, I really do,” Reuss said, per a new report report from Reuters, which cites statements the GM executive made during a a recent Reuters Events broadcast. “I worry about that every day and every night.”
“I’m so worried about it because it’s accelerating and it’s not being contained,” he added.
General Motors halted North American production operations in March following a surge of COVID-19 cases in the United States. Full-capacity production operations did not resume until several months after the initial shutdown. In addition to a production shutdown, GM employees were hit with wide-ranging salary cuts as well.
“I think the industry in general and General Motors has done a good job in our plants,” Reuss said. “But I really worry about people, the death, the suffering and the unemployment that goes along with this pandemic.”
When General Motors’ production operations started to come back online in May, the automaker implemented a raft of new safety procedures to curb the spread of COVID-19, as outlined in a 40-page Safety Playbook distributed to employees. Precautions included things like wearing a face mask, hand sanitization, and social distancing measures.
“But I worry that in places that are very different from the United States, Canada or Mexico that a relaxation of some of these (practices) would hurt the supply chain and have us not be able to run our plants,” Reuss said. “I know everybody is doing the best they can but we have to keep that up.”
Earlier this week, it was announced that some production shifts had been cancelled as a result of a parts shortage stemming from supply issues related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Affected plants included the GM Arlington facility in Texas, which produces GM’s line of full-size SUVs, and the GM Bowling Green facility in Kentucky, which produces the Chevrolet Corvette C8.
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Comments
Go ahead and down vote me, but i think Mark is being genuine here. Its scary out there right now.
The horrors of the 99.99998% survival rate.
Medical malpractice kills about the same number as the inflated covid deaths every year, not counting the people it doesn’t kill but leaves permanently f’d up, but yeah its “scary” out there…….
Please.
yeah, i’m sure just about the entire world shutdown over nothing.
and the only people in on the secret are people like you.
please.
MrR
Hey Stupid,
Your math is wrong, and 1000 Americans are dying everyday. You should shut your pie hole before someone who has lost family members starts using your head for batting practice.
Hey stupid…..7000 die every day, you didn’t care because CNN didn’t tell you to care…..but go ahead an keep on being scared sheep…..
If someone one wants to try to use “my head as batting practice” they’re going to find their a** being used as target practice….
Bur very adult of you to threaten someone with a differing opinion with violence, thats very hot with the new socialist soy boys, why don’t you give your wife back the iPad so she can keep searching for real men…..
MrR
Sounds like your head has already been used for batting practice. When is the last time your family tree branched? It probably would be a wasted effort to ask you to do some basic math.
Why don’t you go learn the difference between Fact and opinion, and try not to blow any more holes in your head while cleaning your weapons.
99.998% survival rate is straight from the CDC but let me know the last time we closed the country for a flu, except of course when the powers that be wanted to deliberately tank the economy during an election?
Hey you stay home and let the gov give you another $1200 check from magic b*****ht money and the men will go out an work sweetie.
MrR
Here is why you are not smarter than a 5th grader. A 99.998% Survival rate would mean Covid 19 kills 1 out of every 50,000 people who get it. We know 250,000 Americans are dead because of Covid 19. You must believe that 12.5 billion Americans have had Covid 19.
Here’s an idea, why don’t you put down that right wing Kool-aid and try thinking for yourself
Well Mark you can help fix your supply chain problem. Step up manufacturing in the U.S. and Canada.
Maybe be more concerned as how you’ve slipped from the largest car company in the world to the 4th or 5th……
I think Mark Ruess is really worried if he will get Mary Barras job when they finally get rid of her.
If he was truly worried about his employees he would stop closing down plants in the US and offshoring jobs.