Looks like some rough seas are ahead…
We’ve been told repeatedly electric is the future of the automotive market, but as we’ve suspected for years, that future doesn’t involve large swaths of the industry. That suspicion has seemingly been confirmed by a new report claiming Ford is preparing to slash 8,000 jobs so it can pursue future electric vehicle plans. Bloomberg claims layoffs of both salaried and hourly employees will be announced in the next few weeks.
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Included in the upcoming cuts will be the new Ford Blue unit. That was created to manage internal combustion engine operations, casting serious doubt on whether Ford will continue manufacturing ICE vehicles in the near future. Executives have talked extensively about reshaping the entire company under the Ford+ plan, which they feel will increase value to consumers and deepen brand loyalty.
Like Elon Musk, Ford CEO Jim Farley has said recently that the automaker has “too many people” onboard and needs to lighten the load some. Musk has justified layoffs because of an impeding recession, but there’s no indication Farley will do the same. It will be telling if automakers which haven’t been enthusiastic about full electrification shed many employees in the coming months.
Ford has been forced to admit in the past its electric vehicle efforts won’t bear a profit until at least 2025 when the next-gen EV models hit the market. There is even some doubt about whether those vehicles will help Ford turn the financial corner.
Funny enough, Governor Gretchen Whitmer claimed back in June that Ford was investing $2 billion in the state of Michigan to create 3,200 jobs, all thanks to EV production efforts. While all the 8,000 layoffs coming up surely aren’t just in Michigan, a fair number likely are.
Source: Bloomberg
Photos via Ford
