Report: Ford to Cut 1,000 Salaried Jobs in U.S.

Ford plans to trim about 1,000 jobs from its white-collar workforce in the U.S. this year through voluntary buyouts, according to multiple media reports.

The cuts, which could be announced later this week, are said to be part of the $11 billion global restructuring plan Ford began about three years ago. They are not directly related to the economic downturn caused by the coronavirus pandemic, according to Bloomberg News.

Ford declined to comment.

Ongoing Global Overhaul

Last year, Ford laid off 7,000 salaried workers worldwide in the first phase of the restructuring, leaving it with a total of 190,000 employees. Those cuts are expected to save the carmaker $600 million per year.

To date, the focus has been on rightsizing Ford’s money-losing European operations, and to a lesser extent in China. The initiative includes eliminating 12,000 jobs in Europe (about 20% of the company’s combined white- and blue-collar workforce there) by the end of this year, and shutting six of its 24 plants in the region.

The cutbacks are expected to be smaller in North America, which is Ford’s most profitable market—thanks to strong sales of its F-Series pickup trucks and SUV/crossover vehicles.

New Management

The new round of buyouts would come at the end of CEO Jim Hackett’s tenure. Last month Ford announced that Hackett will retire on Oct. 1, at which time he will be succeeded by current Chief Operating Officer Jim Farley.

Analysts and investors have been impatient with Ford’s progress since Hackett took the helm in May 2017. The company’s stock price has plunged from a high of about $13 per share in early 2018 to close at $6.82 on Tuesday.

Through the first half of the year, Ford has lost $3.9 billion. Its $2 billon Q1 loss was the carmaker’s first quarterly loss since the Great Recession in 2009.

In addition to Farley, Ford appointed several new executives in April.

Earlier this year, Farley declared the company was “moving with a renewed sense of urgency.” He vows to “swing for the fences” and return Ford’s North American region to a 10% profit margin.