Ford announces 3,800 redundancies – but Merseyside plant will escape the cuts
Automotive giant, Ford, has announced plans to axe 3,800 jobs across its European operations – but its Merseyside transmissions plant at Halewood will escape unscathed.
The US car maker said it will shed the jobs over the next three years, with the aim being to achieve direct redundancies through voluntary means, while cutting budgets on agency staff.
Streamlining plans include moves to cut 1,300 roles at the group’s UK operations, with most in its southern sites.
The Dunton plant in Essex, Ford’s UK headquarters and engineering site, will be hit with 1,000 job losses, with the remaining 300 to come from administrative roles spread across the remaining five sites.
The group owns a transmissions manufacturing site, which employs around 500 staff, in Knowsley, next to the Jaguar Land Rover car plant.
But the motor manufacturer has confirmed that the plant will not be affected by its redundancies round, which is linked to the switch to producing electric vehicles and phasing out traditional petrol and diesel models.
Martin Sander, general manager of Ford model e in Europe, said Ford was aiming to “compete and win in a highly competitive region that is facing significant economic and geo-political headwinds”.
The company said it will engage with unions and workers’ groups across the continent to reduce headcount via voluntary redundancies.
Mr Sander added: “These are difficult decisions, not taken lightly. We recognise the uncertainty it creates for our team, and I assure them we will be offering them our full support in the months ahead.
“We will engage in consultations with our social partners so we can move forward together on building a thriving future for our business in Europe.”
In October 2021, Ford pledged investment worth around £230m, including a portion of funding from the Government, for the Knowsley manufacturing site, which is expected to start producing up to 250,000 electric power units a year from 2024.
Ford of Europe president, Stuart Rowley, said at the time: “This is a very important announcement for Halewood as it will secure the future of the facility along with introducing new technology for Ford vehicles in Europe.”
In response, Sharon Graham, general secretary of trade union Unite, said: “This investment is excellent news for the highly skilled workforce at Halewood as it secures the future of the plant.”
But she added: “It is absolutely imperative that the Government does not see this investment as a one-off but supports similar schemes to ensure the entire UK automotive industry experiences a smooth transition in the move to build electric vehicles.”
The union said it believed there was the prospect of creating between 400-700 jobs at the plant, over time as a consequence of the investment.
