General Motors Chief Rick Wagoner Said to Step Down

General Motors Chief Rick Wagoner Said to Step Down

March 29 (Bloomberg) -- General Motors Corp. Chief Executive Officer Rick Wagoner will step down after more than eight years running the largest U.S. automaker, people familiar with the situation said.

The people, who asked not to be named because the announcement hasn’t been made, didn’t give a reason why Wagoner, 56, is leaving the job. Wagoner said March 19 that he didn’t plan to resign.

The departure of Wagoner comes as President Barack Obama prepares an address tomorrow morning on his plans for the future of the U.S. auto industry. GM is surviving on $13.4 billion in U.S. loans and is asking for as much as $16.6 billion in additional aid to survive.

Wagoner, who has been lampooned in Saturday Night Live skits and vilified for his central role in the auto-industry collapse, said March 19 that the hadn’t been asked by the government or his own board to resign and his plan is to finish the restructuring.

“I do it because it’s important and I feel like I have a responsibility to do it,” Wagoner said. “I plan to stay here until we get things well in shape and on track and beyond that, we’ll see.”

BLOOMBERG