On Monday, Ford Motor Co. announced that it will eliminate about 10% percent of its global salaried workforce, cutting about 7,000 jobs by the end of August as part of its larger restructuring. The move is expected to save the automaker $600 million annually.
Ford Chief Executive Jim Hackett said in a Monday email to employees that the cuts include both voluntary buyouts and layoffs, and a spokesman added it freezes open positions as well. About 2,300 of the affected people are employed in the United States, the spokesman said. Notification to North American affected employees will begin on Tuesday and the majority will be completed by May 24, Hackett said.
The cuts come as U.S. President Donald Trump has harshly criticized automakers, especially General Motors, for cutting jobs, but has focused primarily on blue-collar cuts at factories rather than white-collar reductions.
The White House did not immediately comment on Monday about Ford's salaried cuts.
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