Friday marked the last day of work at Ford Motor Co. for an undisclosed number of salaried contractors, the Dearborn automaker confirmed Saturday.
The company alerted some workers who are employed by outside agencies that their contracts were not being renewed, as first reported by the Detroit Free Press. Ford declined to comment on the number of contractors whose positions were cut.
“People in certain agency positions across a few skill teams were notified Friday by their employers that their assignments at Ford have ended,” said Ford spokesperson T.R. Reid.
The cuts come ahead of an expected round of layoffs among salaried workers that could happen as early as next week, as The Detroit News previously reported.
The latest white-collar cuts at Ford are part of a continuing effort by the automaker to reduce costs and realign talent to reflect changes in the skills that are needed in the shift to digitally-connected, electric vehicles and in an increasingly competitive market.
Reid said late last week that the company had “nothing to announce,” which he reiterated on Saturday.
“As we’ve said, part of the ongoing management of our business includes aligning our global staffing to meet business plans, and staying cost competitive as our industry evolves,” he said Thursday. “At the same time, we continue to hire in key areas so that we have the skills and expertise needed to deliver on the Ford+ plan and leading product and services.”
The cuts would follow other cost-cutting actions Ford has taken under CEO Jim Farley, including 3,000 salaried jobs last year and planned cuts in Europe and China.
Ford executives have said the company has a roughly $7 billion cost disadvantage compared to some of its competitors. The automaker is investing $50 billion in electrification through 2026, by which time it is targeting 10% companywide earnings margins, 8% margins in its EV business, and a production rate of 2 million EVs annually. Part of the cost reduction efforts are aimed at strengthening Ford’s balance sheet as it loses billions of dollars on EVs, even as it expects that trend to reverse in the coming years.
Under Farley, Ford has gone through an internal restructuring that divided the company into business units focused, respectively, on internal combustion engine and hybrid vehicles, electric vehicles and software, and commercial vehicles and services.
Ford’s crosstown rivals have also been cutting costs in recent months. Some 5,000 salaried workers at General Motors Co., for example, accepted buyouts earlier this year, averting layoffs.
News of the upcoming round of job cuts at Ford was first reported by the Wall Street Journal.
jgrzelewski@detroitnews.com