Ford Motor Co. plans to trim about 10 percent of its global salaried workforce while retaining the tech talent it has recruited to develop driverless and electric cars.
The Wall Street Journal reported on Ford's job-reduction plans late Monday.
Jobs are being cut as Ford's directors pressure Chief Executive Mark Fields to boost profits and a lagging stock price. The reductions are expected to target salaried employees mostly in North America and Asia, said a Bloomberg News source. Some are also expected in Europe.
Fields is working to cut costs by about $3 billion this year. With Ford's stock down about 37 percent since he became CEO in 2014, Fields is caught between pleasing a board pressuring him to boost fading profits while placating President Donald Trump, who is pushing automakers to add U.S. jobs. Ford also is pouring billions into electric, self-driving cars and ride sharing as its struggles more than General Motors Co. with a slowing U.S. market.
Reducing costs and becoming "as lean and efficient as possible" is a priority, Ford said. "We have not announced any new people efficiency actions, nor do we comment on speculation."
Retrenching in the U.S. risks reopening Ford to criticism from Trump. Fields and Executive Chairman Bill Ford have curried favor with the president this year, giving him advance notice of hiring and investment at American plants and canceling a small-car factory in Mexico. Trump has pointed to carmakers' plans and claimed they are restoring U.S. manufacturing because of him.
Fields, 56, discussed the cost cuts that Ford plans for this year in a call with analysts last month.
