Ford workers face involuntary layoffs

0 Comments | AFP, May, 2008

DETROIT, Michigan (AFP) — Ford Motor Co. said Wednesday it is planning to make further white collar job cuts in the United States in the face of declining truck sales.

The automakers expects to complete the cuts by August 1 and will not be offering buyout packages, as it has in the past, to encourage employees to quit or retire.

"We will be making cuts but we don't expect to offer voluntary separation," Ford spokeswoman Marcey Evans told AFP. "There just isn't time to prepare a voluntary program."

Evans declined to comment on reports that Ford is preparing to eliminate more than 2,000 salaried positions in North America as part of the new cuts.

"The numbers haven't been finalized yet," she said. "I can't say when the decision will be made but the...