Coronavirus News: Toyota Furloughs Autoworkers, Keeps Plants Shutdown

Toyota (TM) has announced that it will keep its North American plants closed through May 1, resuming production on May 4. The company cited week vehicle demand as well as the impact of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

Along with the news of the extended production shutdown, Toyota has furloughed a number of autoworkers, the San Antonio Business Journal reported. It was unclear exactly how many workers were furloughed at the time of writing with the news outlet reporting that 392 employees at Toyota’s Alamo City Plant in Texas were affected.

Local reports also indicated that autoworkers from Toyota’s Indiana plant were furloughed. The news outlet reported that Toyota was paying workers’ wages for four days each week for the weeks of April 20 and April 27.

Toyota is the latest automaker to furlough workers and extend its plant closure during the coronavirus crisis. Both Honda and Nissan announced they would continue to keep their plants closed in the U.S. with thousands of furloughs taking place at both automakers.

Ford and GM are also keeping their vehicle production facilities closed during the COVID-19 pandemic. Neither company has announced when they will resume production. Fiat Chrysler announced that it was reopening vehicle production in the U.S. on May 4.

Shares of Toyota stock were up 0.49% as of 10:46 a.m. EDT on Thursday.