General Motors is cutting more than 900 jobs at its Arizona Information Technology Innovation Center in Chandler.
The city’s economic development director, Micah Miranda, called it a complete surprise and said they’d recently been working with GM’s local team about higher education partnerships, mentoring and a promotional video highlighting the city’s tech corridor.
GM filed a notice with the state that it will cease operations later this year, eliminating 936 positions.
“With this unfortunate news, we plan to work closely with our workforce development partners to assist with employment opportunities for those impacted,” Miranda said.
In a statement to KJZZ, GM said the closure will better align the company’s innovation center footprint and IT resources in the U.S.
“Employees working in our software defined vehicle teams will remain in AZ,” spokesperson Kevin Kelly said. “Affected employees will have an opportunity to apply for open positions.”
According to its website, GM opened the 170,000 square foot center in 2014 to support IT needs including web technologies, end-user applications, dealer and factory systems and vehicle technology.
