Ford Plans to Eliminate 1,000 Jobs in Britain

09/27/96

Reuters has reported that Ford Motor Co. announced its intention to cut 1,000 jobs at British plants through voluntary reductions and early retirement. A Ford spokesman said the move was part of the company's "ongoing drive to ensure all our plants in the UK are fully competitive on a global basis."

The spokesman said larger Ford plants in Britain had targets for job cuts, but that any job losses would be voluntary. The company says it has the full cooperation of unions.

Ford's major British plants are at Dagenham in east London, and at Halewood on Merseyside, northwest England. Smaller facilities are located at Southampton, southern England, and at Bridgend and Swansea in Wales. The company employs around 30,000 workers in Britain.

Last week, unconfirmed newspaper reports said that Ford intended to cut 1,000 jobs at Halewood, replacing in-house production of components with parts purchases from outside suppliers.

Paul Dever -- The Auto Channel