EV-maker Rivian lays off 239 Orange County workers

Irvine-based Rivian Automotive has laid off 239 workers at its Irvine, Costa Mesa and Tustin operations as part of a cost-cutting measure to reduce its headcount by 6%.

Notices sent to the state Employment Development Department show the electric-vehicle automaker cut another 240 jobs at three Palo Alto facilities. That would bring the California total to 479, although the company estimated it would actually be closer to 476.

The layoffs were expected to be completed on or around April 14.

The staffing reductions will impact a variety of positions, including “trail” engineers, geometric design engineers and mechanical engineers, as well as others involved in support services, digital surfacing, security, purchasing, program management, customer service, supply chain service and software engineering.

Rivian said assembly line workers at its manufacturing plant in Normal, Illinois will not be affected by the job cuts.

Irvine-based Rivian Automotive is reducing its headcount by 6% in a cost-savings measure. In California, that has amounted to an estimated 479 layoffs, according to state records. (File photo by Gene Blevins/Contributing photographer)

“To deliver over the long-term, we must focus our resources on ramp and our path to profitability while ensuring we have the right set of future products, services and technology,” Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe wrote in a recent memo.

Rivian media representative Harry Porter didn’t elaborate on the staffing cuts when contacted Monday, April 24.

The California workforce reduction is the second in the last year for the EV maker, making for combined cuts of around 800 employees. Rivian had around 14,000 employees worldwide before the latest cuts, according to Bloomberg.

Rivian builds two EV models — a battery-electric pickup called R1T and a plug-in SUV called R1S. The company also builds electric delivery vans for Amazon, one of its biggest backers. All three models are built at its production plant in Normal, Illinois.

In February, Rivian told its staff the company is also developing an electric bike.

Scaringe announced the e-bike plan at a Feb. 3 companywide meeting and said a small group of engineers is working on it, according to Bloomberg. It’s not clear if he was referring to a battery-electric motorcycle or bicycle.

Seeking Alpha, an online company that publishes news on financial markets, reported on April 21 that Rivian shares had fallen 28.8% year-to-date. But it also said the company’s vehicle production is expected to more than double from 24,337 units in 2022 to 50,000 in 2023.

In an April 3 posting on the company’s website, Rivian said it produced 9,395 vehicles in the quarter ending March 31, 2023, and delivered 7,946 vehicles during the same period.

“These figures remain in line with the company’s expectations, and it believes it is on track to deliver on the 50,000 annual production guidance previously provided,” Rivian said.