US car manufacturer Ford has said it will be seeking to cut another 1,600 jobs at its assembly plant near Valencia, where it already axed 1,100 positions last year.
The company, which employs about 4,700 workers at the factory, told unions it plans to eliminate 600 jobs permanently, while it is open to negotiate the possible rehiring of the other 1,000 later – as it plans to boost output at the plant from 2027 when production of a new vehicle begins.
The UGT union said the redundancy would affect a total of 1,622 staff at the Almussafes plant, about 20 kilometres south of Valencia.
In March 2023, Ford announced plans to cut around 1,100 jobs at the same factory as it moved to reorganise its European operations, angering Spain’s left-wing government. ALSO READ: Ford to cut 1,100 jobs at Valencia plant.
A month earlier, it had moved to cut 2,300 positions in Germany and 1,300 in Britain, representing around 10% of its European staff.
Ford said it wanted to create ‘a leaner, more competitive cost structure’ so it could reduce the models developed for the European market, concentrate on the profitable van segment and speed up the transition to electric vehicles. ALSO READ: Ford sees ‘significant’ job cuts as it picks Valencia for electric vehicle production.
Like other automakers, Ford has decided to shift to electric vehicles, which requires massive investments in developing new technologies and retooling factories.
Ford last month said it would start the production of a new hybrid passenger car at the factory located in Almussafes, from 2027 for the European market and elsewhere.
The company aims to produce 300,000 units of the new car annually, the country’s Industry Ministry said at the time.
The cuts announced this week come as European concerns grow about the impact of substantial US subsidies for electric vehicles manufactured in the country, which could prompt foreign automakers to shift towards American production sites.
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