General Motors yesterday said it would axe 14 per cent of its white-collar jobs and cut or review salaries and benefits globally as it worked to hammer out a restructuring plan due next week.
The job cuts will take place this year and reduce GM's salaried workforce by about 10,000 to 63,000. In its home US market, about 3,400 of its 29,500 employees will be affected.
GM said it was cutting executives' base pay by 10 per cent and that of many of its other salaried employees by three to seven per cent as of May 1. It said its other global operations were reviewing pay and benefits.
The company, which is receiving an emergency $13.4bn government bridge loan, promised to cut its white-collar staff in a presentation to Congress in December. GM is due to present government with proposals for its long-term viability by February 17.
GM's total worldwide payroll, including blue-collar workers, has fallen from 327,000 at the end of 2005 to 252,000 as of the end of September 2008.
As it scrambles to avoid bankruptcy, GM and its advisers are exploring two different bankruptcy scenarios, according to people with knowledge of the plans.
Harvey Miller, a restructuring partner at law firm Weil Gotshal & Manges, is preparing a “traditional” bankruptcy filing for the company. Such a plan would aim to restructure the company in court using common bankruptcy techniques such as slashing labour, supply and overhead costs.
The other plan, developed by Martin Bienenstock, a restructuring partner with Dewey & LeBoeuf, is more ambitious. Mr Bienenstock proposes that GM separate its best brands and assets into a viable company.
参考译文：
通用汽车(General Motors)昨天宣布，将裁减14%的白领职位，并在全球范围内削减或重审工资与福利。目前，通用汽车正在努力制定一项应于下周公布的重组计划。
此次裁员将在今年执行，将把通用汽车员工数量减少1万，至6.3万人。在美国国内市场总计2.95万名员工中，约有3400人将被裁减。
通用汽车称，自今年5月1日起，公司管理层的基本薪酬将降低10%，其他员工的薪酬也将削减3至7个百分点。公司表示，旗下其它全球运营部门也在重审薪资和福利。
在12月向美国国会提交的报告中，获得政府134亿美元紧急过渡贷款的通用汽车承诺，将裁减其白领职员的人数。按照计划，通用汽车将在2月17日之前向政府递交关于其长期生存问题的计划书。
到2008年9月底，通用汽车的全球雇员数量（包括蓝领工人）已从2005年底的32.7万减少至25.2万。
据知情人士透露，就在公司想方设法避免破产之际，通用及其顾问机构也在研究两种不同的破产方案。
威嘉律师事务所(Weil Gotshal & Manges)的重组合伙人哈维•米勒(Harvey Miller)，正为通用准备一项“传统的”破产方案。该方案旨在依靠法庭，使用常规破产手段来重组公司，如裁员、裁减供应商和营运成本等。
另一项方案较为野心勃勃，由杜威路博国际律师事务所(Dewey & LeBoeuf)负责重组业务的合伙人马丁•宾斯托克(Martin Bienenstock)拟订。宾斯托克建议通用汽车将旗下最好的几个品牌和资产剥离出来，成立一个更具生存能力的公司。
（转载）
