29 May, 2017
The Detroit automakers are under pressure from President Donald Trump to add jobs in the United States, but declining US sales and stalled share values are exerting a stronger force.
Ford's shares have lost more than a third of their value since Mark Fields became chief executive in 2014.
The Dearborn, Mich., auto maker has booked substantial profits in recent years, including two consecutive years of record earnings, but Ford's market capitalization earlier this year sunk below that of electric-car startup Tesla Inc.
Ford said last month it plans to cut costs by $3 billion in 2017, despite commodity prices rising by $1 billion. The statement added that the company has not announced new people efficiency action nor does it comment on any speculation.
The job cuts are also not expected to impact hourly workers at Ford's factories or its Europe and South America operations, which have previously undergone job cuts.
Ford has 200,000 employees globally, half of which work in North America.
Retrenching in the US risks reopening Ford to criticism from Trump.
Ford will allegedly cut approximately 10 percent of its global workforce in order to bolster corporate profits and stem stock-price bleeding, The Wall Street Journal reports, citing sources close to the plan. All other "skill teams" will be included, however.
Ford steered clear of the bankruptcies that allowed GM and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV's Chrysler unit to cut significant costs under chapter 11 protections.
"With a robust dividend of 5.37%, which is more than twice the 2% yield average from the S&P 500 index, makes Ford stock worth looking at more closely", Saintvilus wrote.
Ford won praise from Trump when it announced in early January that it was scrapping plans for a plant in Mexico and would invest $700 million in a MI plant to build electric and self-driving cars.
Ford temporarily laid off 130 workers at an OH truck plant earlier this month to match lagging output with slower customer demand. "Car companies coming back to U.S. JOBS!"
The buyout affects about 15,000 employees in North America and the target is about 10 per cent, but that doesn't necessarily mean Ford Canada has a target of 60 employees, Mr. Moran said. It's also investing $1 billion in a Pittsburgh-based artificial intelligence company Argo AI, which will develop the virtual driver system for fully autonomous vehicles scheduled to arrive in 2021.