Ford plans to cut around 800 jobs in the UK

A total of about 4,000 workers will be cut in Europe.

Photo by: Ford

By: Roland Hildebrandt

Nov 21, 2024 at 3:20am ET

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Things are not going well for Ford in Europe. In Germany, the market share in the passenger car segment is currently only 3.6 per cent. One reason is that popular models have been cancelled, while at the same time, the new Explorer and Capri electric cars are not performing as well as the firm hoped. As a result, the company is now planning further massive job cuts.

In a press release issued by Ford, the manufacturer says: "Ford Motor Company today announced restructuring plans to create a more cost-competitive structure and ensure the long-term sustainability and growth of its business in Europe. Of particular concern is the health of Ford’s passenger vehicle business in Europe, where the company has incurred significant losses in recent years, and where the industry shift to electrified vehicles and new competition has been highly disruptive."

Gallery: 2025 Ford Capri test

Source: Ford

Subject to consultations with the European social partners, the company plans to cut around 4,000 jobs in Europe by the end of 2027. The majority of the measures will affect sites in Germany and the UK. Only minor changes are planned in the other European markets. About 800 of the affected jobs will be in the United Kingdom where the automaker currently employs around 5,300 workers.

In addition, Ford is further adjusting the production programme for the new Explorer and Capri due to the weak economic situation in Europe and the weak demand for electric cars. This will lead to additional short-time working days at the plant in Cologne in the first quarter of 2025. It is interesting to note that IG Metall, Germany's largest single trade union with around 2.2 million members, had ruled out compulsory redundancies at Ford in Germany until 31 December 2032, i.e. for around 10 years.

"Ford has been in Europe for more than 100 years. We are proud of our new product portfolio for Europe and committed to building a thriving business in Europe for generations to come,” said Dave Johnston, Ford’s European vice president for Transformation and Partnerships. “It is critical to take difficult but decisive action to ensure Ford’s future competitiveness in Europe."

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Golden times in 1980: the two millionth vehicle - a Fiesta - rolls off the production line in Saarlouis to mark the 10th anniversary of the plant.

Ford is clearly committed to Europe, though. The company has made significant investments over the past four years to transform its business in Europe. In Cologne alone, Ford has invested £1.5 billion in the past few years in remodelling the plant, retraining thousands of employees and manufacturing electric vehicles. Around £430 million were invested in Ford's UK development and manufacturing facilities.

Ford's future European business is to be based on three pillars:

- A thriving Ford Pro commercial vehicle business, where Ford has been the brand leader for the past decade and one of the leading manufacturers. We will continue to invest in this business to expand our leadership and to support our business customers in their ambition to lower emissions, improve productivity and serve their communities.

- A successful and profitable passenger vehicle business, competing in select segments with iconic vehicles that are distinctively Ford. We will offer our customers a range of ICE, hybrid and fully electric vehicles, while meeting all European regulations.

- A modern, highly efficient industrial system, taking advantage of the latest innovation and technological advances in manufacturing, and reaching fully competitive levels of cost and quality. Ford is committed to the green transformation of our industry and doing our part to lower emissions.

Will the transformation succeed? Or will Ford disappear in certain European markets in the long term? While the commercial vehicle division is stable, competitors from China are always giving the passenger car division a hard time. However, Ford itself also bears a large share of the blame for the crisis, as the Mondeo was taken out of the range in Europe and, in particular, production of the Fiesta was discontinued without replacement after 47 years.

Sources: IG Metall Köln-Leverkusen, Ford