Rivian cuts ~4.5% of workforce, more than 600 employees placed on paid administrative leave

Rivian announced on October 23 that it cut roughly 4.5% of its workforce, impacting more than 600 employees. Affected workers have been placed on paid administrative leave for 60 days and will remain on payroll through December 23, receiving full pay and benefits during that period; that pay will be deducted from final severance. Severance amounts vary by "RIV Grade Level" and tenure, with examples in the documents detailing up to 28 weeks for senior executives and smaller amounts for lower grades. The company cited the need to "profitably scale" and prepare for the R2 SUV launch as reasons for the reductions, and said affected employees are eligible for rehire and offered career-transition services. The story places the cuts in the context of broader EV industry headwinds, including waning consumer adoption and changes to federal tax credits.

Rivian cut 600 jobs in CA as of October 23, 2024.

That is roughly 4% of the 15,000 people Rivian employs.

LayoffTalk has tracked 20 layoff events at Rivian since October 2022, including 784 jobs documented in official WARN filings, with 14 additional events known from news reporting.