Although it has not officially announced a turnaround plan due to be made public this month, published reports indicate that Freightliner is already working on strategies to cut an estimated $1 billion expected loss this year.

Freightliner recently announced cuts in pay, benefits and bonuses for non-union employees. Now the Associated Press reports that its union workers have voted to make similar concessions, hoping to keep truck plants open in Freightliner's hometown of Portland, Ore.
Union officials told the AP that they were told if they agreed to the concessions, they would be spared from the next round of layoffs. In a written statement, Freightliner said it would "take the outcome of the vote into consideration as it moves to finalize its turnaround plan."
Freightliner also is reportedly trying to re-negotiate with many fleets its guaranteed buyback contracts. According to The Wall Street Journal, in a strategy to increase its market share, Freightliner made deals with fleets promising to buy back trucks at guaranteed prices - prices which today are more than what the truck will bring at resale in a used truck glut and overall down trucking market. According to the paper, Freightliner is asking fleets to keep their trucks an extra year or two and accept less money from Freightliner when they do return them.
The parent company of Freightliner, DaimlerChrysler, is expected to discuss the Freightliner turnaround plan today during its regular meeting at company headquarters in Stuttgart, Germany.