General Motors CEO Mary Bara said Thursday that 15 employees have been fired over faulty ignition switches, which have been linked to 13 deaths. However, she also said that an internal report found no evidence of an intended cover-up.
Bara did not identify those who were fired, but said they were mostly in executive or senior positions, notes USA Today. She also said that five others were disciplined.
“A unique series of mistakes was made,” Bara said, following the findings of the internal report conducted by Anton Valukas, a former U.S. attorney. While the report is “painful” and shows a “fundamental” failure on the automaker’s part, it found “no conspiracy” to intentionally not tell the public about the deadly defect to save money.
“Repeatedly, individuals failed to disclose critical pieces of information that could have fundamentally changed the lives of those impacted by a faulty ignition switch,” Bara said during a meeting with employees, reports The New York Times. “If this information had been disclosed, I believe in my heart the company would have dealt with this matter appropriately.”
The report was the next major step in GM’s handling of the crisis, which has engulfed the company early in Bara’s tenure. The company recalled a total of 2.6 million cars because of the faulty ignition switches, which caused cars to randomly turn off while a driver was driving. GM has since issued a series of other recalls that have affected millions of cars. Bara and the company has also faced questions from Congress and GM will pay a $35 million fine to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration for not notifying them within five days of learning of a defect.
During a press conference after the speech with employees, Bara said that GM plans on compensating “everyone who has lost a loved one or suffered a serious injury” due to the defect.