CEO Jim Hackett: "We must . . . cut costs."
With the battle intensifying over development of autonmous cars, and with signs that global car demand has peaked, Ford Motor co. on Monday announced it plans to eliminate about 7,000 salaried jobs, or about 10% of its global white-collar workforce.
The cuts will help Ford save about $600 million a year, Chief Executive Officer Jim Hackett wrote in a memo to employees Monday, reports Keith Naughton of Bloomberg.
“To succeed in our competitive industry, and position Ford to win in a fast-changing future, we must reduce bureaucracy, empower managers, speed decision making, focus on the most valuable work, and cut costs,” Hackett wrote. “Ford is a family company and saying goodbye to colleagues is difficult and emotional.”
Tom Perkins of Metro Times weighs in:
Ford today began eliminating about 7,000 white-collar jobs as part of a previously announced company-wide global restructuring.
That includes 500 local jobs that will be cut this week, with 300 more to be axed by June. Ford says the company's "smart redesign" will save it around $600 million annually.
That feels a bit unjust when one considers that just a few months ago state and Detroit officials handed the automaker $240 million in tax incentives to relocate its autonomous vehicle division from Dearborn to Corktown.
