Dealer group: GM closings to cost 137,330 jobs

General Motors Corp.’s plan to eliminate more than 40 percent of its retail franchises will eliminate as many as 137,330 dealership jobs, the National Automobile Dealers Association said.

John McEleney, chairman of the National Automobile Dealers Association, said in a statement that GM’s plan to eliminate 2,641 dealerships in 18 months could cost the automaker $35 billion in revenue and will cost state and local governments about $1.7 billion in sales taxes.

GM, which is facing a government-imposed June 1 deadline to restructure or file for bankruptcy, said Monday it intends to cut its dealership ranks by 42 percent to 3,600. The move is part of GM’s plan to reduce liabilities by $44 billion to keep $15.4 billion in U.S. loans and receive as much as $11.6 billion more.

“We feel a strong sense of disappointment that GM has, for whatever reason, decided to accelerate dealer consolidation in such a drastic way,” McEleney said in the statement. “It is imperative that GM treat all of the dealers fairly and equitably and that they be properly compensated. After all, it’s not out of any fault of their own that these dealers are being forced to close their businesses.”