Ford Offers 75,000 Workers Buyouts
By MICHELINE MAYNARD and NICK BUNKLEY
DEARBORN, Mich., Sept. 14 — The Ford Motor Company and the United Automobile Workers union agreed today on a program that will offer buyouts and other incentives to more than 75,000 Ford workers in the United States to persuade them to leave their jobs. Ford said it would announce details of an expanded version of its sweeping plan for overhauling the company, called the Way Forward, at 7 a.m. Eastern time on Friday. The new steps are expected to include further cuts in white- and blue-collar jobs, spending cuts and changes in Ford’s lineup of car and truck models and brands.
The buyout program, which had been rumored for weeks, was announced by the union in a fax message sent to leaders of its locals. Ford had no immediate comment. “Once again, our members are stepping up to make hard choices under difficult circumstances,” the union’s president. Ron Gettelfinger, wrote in the fax. “Now, it’s Ford Motor Company’s responsibility to lead this company in a positive direction — which means using the skills, experience and dedication to quality that U.A.W. members demonstrate every day in order to deliver quality vehicles to customers.”
The terms of the buyout offers were set to be made public later, according to the fax. It said all active U.A.W. members at Ford would be eligible for some kind of incentive, offered on a one-time-only basis...
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/14/business/15fordcnd.html