GM to shed 21,000 U.S. factory jobs, Pontiac

updated 1:57 p.m. ET April 27, 2009

DETROIT - General Motors Corp. could be majority owned by the federal government under a massive restructuring plan laid out Monday that will cut 21,000 U.S. factory jobs by next year and phase out the storied Pontiac brand.

The plan, which includes an offer to swap roughly $27 billion in bond debt for GM stock, would leave current shareholders holding just 1 percent of the century-old company, which is fighting for its life in the worst auto sales climate in 27 years.

GM is living on $15.4 billion in government loans and said Monday in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission that it envisions receiving an additional $11.6 billion. But if GM’s restructuring plan can’t satisfy the government by June 1, the struggling company could go into bankruptcy protection.

GM said that it will ask the government to take more than 50 percent of its common stock in exchange for canceling half the government loans to the company as of June 1. The swap would cancel about $10 billion in government debt.

In addition, GM is offering stock to the United Auto Workers for at least 50 percent of the $20 billion the company must pay into a union run trust that will take over retiree health care expenses starting next year.

If both are successful, the government and UAW health care trust would own 89 percent of GM stock, with the government holding more than a 50 percent stake, CEO Fritz Henderson said in a news conference at GM’s Detroit headquarters.

President Barack Obama’s administration said in a statement that the bond exchange filing is an important step in GM’s restructuring but the administration has not made a final decision about taking stock for part of its loans.

“The interim plan that GM laid out in this filing reflects the work GM has done since March 30 to chart a new path to financial viability. We will continue to work with GM’s management as it refines and finalizes this plan and with all of GM’s stakeholders to help GM restructure consistent with the president’s commitment to a strong, vibrant American auto industry,” the statement said.

Henderson said that although the government would own a majority of GM’s outstanding common shares, the Treasury “hasn’t demonstrated interest in running the company,” but would have someone on the board looking out for the taxpayers’ interest. The task force has directed current board chairman Kent Kresa to replace several board members.

“The shareholders, the VEBA (health care trust) and the government would want to have a someone on the board of directors,” he said.

Deals with the UAW and the Treasury have yet to be finalized, he said.

The struggling automaker said it will offer 225 shares of common stock for every $1,000 in notes held by bondholders as part of a debt-for-equity swap. Henderson said the objective is to reduce GM’s $27 billion of outstanding public debt by about $24 billion. The company estimates that after the exchange, bondholders would own 10 percent of the company.

That would leave current common stockholders with only 1 percent, GM said.

The plans, if successful, would reduce GM’s debt by $44 billion from the present figure of about $62.4 billion.

“We would be substantially less-leveraged as a company,” Henderson said.

Video   Bye-bye Pontiac April 27: CNBC’s Hampton Pearson talks to GM dealers about the elimination of the Pontiac brand. CNBC

Kip Penniman Jr., an analyst with KDP Investment Advisors Inc., predicted the exchange offer would fail and GM will file for bankruptcy. The value of all of GM’s outstanding stock is about $1.27 billion, so if bondholders get about 10 percent of the equity, the offer is only worth about 5 cents per dollar of GM bonds, he said.

GM’s plan depends on 90 percent of bondholders exchanging their debt, and “there is no chance that GM will get anywhere near that participation rate,” Penniman said in a research note.

Henderson said if the debt exchange isn’t successful, he would expect GM to file for bankruptcy protection somewhere around June 1, but such a filing would be unlikely very long before the deadline. Bondholders have until May 26 to accept the exchange offer.

Henderson said the company still prefers to restructure outside of court, but he acknowledged that the prospect of bankruptcy is more likely now that it was a few weeks ago.

“The task at hand in terms of what we need to get done is formidable,” Henderson said. “But it can be done.”

GM said it would speed up six additional factory closings that were announced in February, although it did not identify the locations. Additional salaried jobs cuts also are coming, beyond the 3,400 in the U.S. completed last week.

Henderson said there would be three more factory closures in 2010 beyond the six that were previously planned. He expects to identify them by publicly in May. They will include assembly, engine and transmission and parts-stamping factories, he said.

Including previously announced plant closures, the restructuring will leave GM with 34 factories at the end of next year, 13 fewer than the 47 it had at the end of 2008.

Besides the U.S. job cuts, General Motors Canada said it plans to slash its hourly work force to from 10,300 currently to 4,400 by 2014 years.

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