Ford Confirms Plan To Cut 1,400 Jobs, Through Early Retirement And 'special' Separation Packages

Ford Motor Co. confirmed Wednesday it plans to reduce 10% of its workforce costs in North America and Asia Pacific this year, through early retirement and special separation packages. "Full details about the voluntary packages and how the program will work will be communicated with employees in early June," Ford said in an emailed statement to MarketWatch. The auto maker said it expects 1,400 salaried positions to be affected by the end of September, as part of its plan to reduce costs and becoming as "lean as efficient as possible." The company said most skill teams in North American and Asia Pacific will be affected, with the exception of product development and Ford Credit, plant manufacturing, information technology and global data and analytics. Ford's Europe and South America operations aren't affected because they have already completed job cuts or have them under way. The Wall Street Journal had reported earlier this week, citing people briefed on the plan, that Ford was planning to slash its global workforce by 10%. The stock, which slipped 0.4% in premarket trade, has dropped 9.8% year to date through Tuesday, while the S&P 500 had gained 7.2%.