PepsiCo is gearing up to lay off 83 employees as it closes down major portions of its Detroit manufacturing operations. The decision to shut down production, maintenance, and transport activities at the facility located at 1555 Mack Avenue is part of a wider corporate cost-cutting effort and is set to take effect on September 27, as per reports from ClickOnDetroit.
The downsizing move comes in the wake of declining beverage sales in North America, with PepsiCo experiencing a 2% drop in the region during the second quarter, according to reporting by MLive. Despite a continuing gross profit increase for the company, the rate of growth has been on the slow side. To quickly regain ground, PepsiCo is investing in products aimed at health-conscious consumers, recently acquiring probiotic soda company Poppi for $1.95 billion.
While the impacted jobs are focused on manufacturing, the warehouse, fleet, delivery, sales, and field-service technician teams at the Detroit PepsiCo facility will remain operational. The affected employees, about 11 of whom are part of Teamsters Local 337 and Operating Engineers 324, have been promised support to find new jobs within the company. “We are providing information to affected employees about other job openings and actively working to place them at nearby facilities,” PepsiCo stated in a notice received by ClickOnDetroit. Employees will continue to receive their wages and benefits up until their last day with PepsiCo…