Detroit, Oct 01: Ford Motor Co. will eliminate 1,700 contract workers, 1,300 vacant salaried positions and 50 salaried employees in North America by year's end, the automaker said. The cutbacks are linked to Ford's announcement in July that it hoped to cut 10 per cent of costs associated with its salaried automotive work force by the end of 2003, Ford spokesman Oscar Suris said yesterday.
Jim Padilla, president of Ford North America, notified workers of the latest measures in an internal memo yesterday, Suris said. Suris declined to say if the 3,050 reductions would allow the automaker to reach its 10 per cent goal or if further cuts were needed.
In another cost-cutting move, Ford's German division said Monday it plans to trim about 1,700 jobs, or six per cent of its work force, also by year's end - a decision that follows a large second-quarter loss for the automaker's European arm. Bureau Report