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☆ Ford to cut 14% of European jobs, blaming EV shift and rising competition
▼ + stars: | 2024-11-20 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Ford Explorer electric cars are parked on car transporters on the Ford factory premises. It is the first electric car from Ford in Europe. The US car manufacturer Ford wants to cut 2,900 jobs in Germany by the end of 2027 in order to reduce costs. Ford said on Wednesday it would cut around 14% of its European workforce, blaming significant losses in recent years compounded by weak demand for electric vehicles, a lack of government support for the shift to EVs, and rising competition. The European Union has slapped tariffs on Chinese-made EVs, saying they benefit from unfair subsidies from China's government.

Persons: Ford, Donald Trump, John Lawler Organizations: Ford, Nissan, Volkswagen, European Locations: Ford, Europe, Germany, U.S, China, United Kingdom, Berlin

☆ Ford finds international investor for German plant in Saarlouis
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

HAMBURG, June 30 (Reuters) - Ford (F.N) has found what it described as a major international investor for the U.S. carmaker's German plant in Saarlouis and has signed initial agreements together with the western state of Saarland, it said at a works meeting at the plant on Friday. "This is an excellent basis for further negotiations, with the potential to create around 2,500 jobs in Saarlouis," said Martin Sander, head of the company's German unit Ford Werke. "This week we have taken a big step towards this goal," he said, adding that the aim was still to transform the plant and create future employment opportunities. A Ford spokesperson did not name the investor but said only that it is a major international investor. Reporting by Jan Schwartz, Writing by Miranda Murray; editing by Matthias WilliamsOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Martin Sander, China's, Jan Schwartz, Miranda Murray, Matthias Williams Organizations: U.S, Ford Werke, Ford, Street, Thomson Locations: HAMBURG, Saarlouis, Saarland

☆ Police Raids Target Italian Mafia Across Europe
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( Margherita Stancati | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Police secured evidence on Wednesday during a raid in Saarlouis, Germany. Photo: Beckerbredel/DPA/Associated PressROME—Police in Italy, Germany and Belgium arrested 200 people linked to the ‘Ndrangheta crime syndicate, in the most sweeping, cross-border operation to date against the West’s richest mob group. The early Wednesday raids were the result of an international investigation that spanned 10 countries and several years. The police operation deals a major blow to the ‘Ndrangheta, which emerged from Italy’s impoverished south to become a dominant player in the global cocaine trade.

☆ German labour representative says Ford execs have offered talks on restructuring plan
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Ford said on Jan. 20 that its planned shift to electric vehicle (EV) production will require unspecified structural changes, giving rise to fears of job cuts at its German production sites. Ford committed to an all-electric lineup in Europe by 2030 and its U.S. leadership has repeatedly flagged that EVs require less labour. German union officials said on Wednesday that Ford would decide by mid-February how many jobs to cut in Europe. "Ford management has indicated their willingness to talk," Benjamin Gruschka, who is affiliated with trade union IG Metall, told a media briefing in Cologne. He said no date for talks had been agreed and that Ford had yet to give details on what their restructuring plan entails.

The future of the Saarlouis site has been unclear since last June when Ford picked a site in Spain to assemble its next-generation electric vehicle (EV) over the German plant, which will stop producing its current model, the Ford Focus, from 2025. Separately, union representatives for Ford's largest German site in Cologne will meet with Ford's management on Saturday to negotiate on planned job cuts across Europe announced by management to workers on Monday. Management figures presented a worst-case scenario to 12,000 workers in a packed assembly hall of up to 2,500 job cuts in product development and a further 700 in administration. The carmaker has committed to an all-electric lineup in Europe by 2030 and its U.S. leadership has repeatedly flagged that EVs require less labour. Reporting by Victoria Waldersee and Christina Amann; Editing by Paul Carrel, Alexander Smith and Andrea RicciOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Ford in Talks to Sell German Plant to China’s BYD
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( William Boston | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

BERLIN— Ford Motor Co. is in talks with Chinese electric-vehicle maker BYD Co. over the sale of a manufacturing plant in Germany, according to people familiar with the discussions. Officials from Ford’s management in Germany are planning to travel to China next week to discuss the potential sale of a plant in Saarlouis, where vehicle production is slated to end in 2025. Ford produces its Focus compact model there. Terms of the deal, including a price, couldn’t be learned.

The company wants to axe up to 2,500 jobs in product development and up to 700 in administrative roles, with German locations most affected, IG Metall said. Ford last year announced a $2 billion investment to expand production at its Cologne plant to make an all-electric model for the mass market. It also has a partnership with Volkswagen (VOWG_p.DE) to produce 1.2 million vehicles on the German carmaker's MEB electric platform over six years. That partnership remains in place, Ford and Volkswagen representatives said, though Ford's U.S. spokesperson added that Volkswagen's role in Ford's next generation of European electric vehicles was still to be determined. "We will not hold back from measures that could seriously impact the company, not just in Germany but Europe-wide."

☆ Ford plans 3,200 job cuts in Europe as it moves some work to the US
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Berlin Reuters —Ford plans to cut 3,200 jobs across Europe and move some product development work to the United States, Germany’s IG Metall union said on Monday, vowing action that would disrupt the carmaker across the continent if the cuts go ahead. Ford (F) wants to axe 2,500 jobs in product development and a further 700 in administrative roles, with German locations most affected, IG Metall said. Ford of Europe produces, sells and services Ford brand vehicles in 50 markets, employing around 45,000 people at its own facilities and consolidated joint ventures, according to its website. “If negotiations between the works council and management in coming weeks do not ensure the future of workers, we will join the process. We will not hold back from measures that could seriously impact the company not just in Germany but Europe-wide,” IG Metall said.

☆ Ford’s beloved little Fiesta is going away, at least for now
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-27 | by ( Peter Valdes-Dapena | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN Business —The Ford Fiesta, a hugely popular little hatchback in much of the world, will soon no longer appear in Ford’s European dealerships. That factory will be turned over entirely to producing electric vehicles once the last Fiesta comes off the assembly line, which is expected to happen in June 2023. A Ford Fiesta in Ford's European design studio in 1975. It was the best-selling small car in all of Europe each year from 2011 to 2015, according to Ford. “My first ever car and what a car it was.”Besides the fuel-efficient base model, the Fiesta has been produced in performance variants like the Fiesta ST and Fiesta XR2.

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