Ford Motor Co. announced Monday evening plans to slash up to 10 percent of its workforce in Asia and North America, a move the company hopes will boost profits and bolster its falling stock price.
The company plans to offer enticing retirement packages to salaried employees to reduce overall headcount, Reuters reports. Ford has nearly 30,000 salaried employees in the U.S. and over 200,000 worldwide.
Monday’s announcement is Ford’s latest cost cutting measure to turn the company into a profitable enterprise, after some recently depressing sales figures. Ford announced a plan to cut costs by $3 billion in early-May, which would reportedly boost its profits even if U.S. auto sales continue to decline.
“We are continuing our intense focus on cost and the reason for that is not only mindful of the current environment that we’re in, but also I think preparing us even more for a downturn scenario,” Chief Executive Mark Fields told reporters.
The company’s market value is currently behind Tesla and General Motors, and its stock price has fallen over 40 percent since 2014.
Slashing jobs in the U.S., even at a 10 percent rate or lower, is likely to spark some conflict with President Donald Trump’s administration. The president has repeatedly roasted companies for planning to move jobs overseas, or make substantive cuts to their U.S. workforce.
Trump took aim at Ford in January for maintaining large-scale production facilities in Mexico. In response, Ford bagged its plans for a new $1.6 billion factory in Mexico and instead, added 700 jobs to its Michigan plant. (RELATED: GM Plans Over $1 Billion Investment)
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