VinFast cutting 80 jobs amid North American restructuring

Electric vehicle maker VinFast is trimming its headcount in Canada and the U.S. as the company restructures its operations in North America.

News outlets, including Bloomberg, reported on Feb. 7 that approximately 80 workers are affected by the reduction.

The cuts come after VinFast announced in a news release on Jan. 25 that it’s merging its Canadian and U.S. strategic business and management operations into a single unit, which will be called “VinFast North America.”

“[VinFast North America] will be headquartered in Los Angeles, California,” the release reads.

“VinFast Canada will become a member company under VinFast North America, responsible for sales, service and distribution in the Canadian market.”

The company added that Van Anh Nguyen has been named CEO of VinFast North America. Nguyen will also remain at the helm of VinFast U.S. – Manufacturing.

According to LinkedIn, VinFast employs more than 200 people in Canada and U.S.

Canadian impact

It remains unclear how many Canadian workers are affected by the latest round of cuts at VinFast.

However, a source tells Auto123.com that around 30 employees, or 30 per cent of the company’s workforce in the country, have been let go.

Matthew Veenbaas, a technical training manager in Kitchener, Ontario, shared on LinkedIn that he no longer works for VinFast.

Currently headquartered in Burnaby, British Columbia, VinFast Canada has stores in several major Canadian cities, including Toronto, Mississauga, Oakville, Guelph, Surrey, and West Vancouver.

Major layoffs continue

The reduction at VinFast comes amid a flurry of layoffs to kick off 2023.

Big names, including Alphabet, Dell, Best Buy, Hudson’s Bay, Microsoft, Amazon, and Salesforce, are scaling back their staffing levels as they continue to monitor market conditions.

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• Adidas fires large number of Canadian staff, folds operations into U.S.
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• Layoffs in Canada

Termination agreements for VinFast employees

In Canada, non-unionized employees and senior executives at VinFast are owed full severance pay when they lose their jobs due to downsizing or corporate restructuring.

This includes individuals working full-time, part-time, or hourly in Ontario and B.C.

Severance can be as much as 24 months’ pay, depending on a number of factors.

LEARN MORE
• Severance packages in mass layoffs
• Rights to severance for provincially regulated employees
• Severance pay in a recession

WATCH: Employment lawyer Lior Samfiru explains what rights employees have if they are being fired or let go on an episode of the Employment Law Show.

Before you accept any severance offer, have an experienced employment lawyer at Samfiru Tumarkin LLP review it and your employment contract.

We can tell you if what you have been provided is fair and how to get proper compensation if it falls short of what you are actually owed.

If you aren’t given the full amount, which happens often, you have been wrongfully dismissed and are entitled to compensation.