Ford cutting thousands of employees as it amps up EV production.
Key details
Ford Motor announced that it will cut 3,000 employees, mostly in North America and India, as it restructures to catch up in the race to develop software-driven electric vehicles (EVs).
Ford CEO Jim Farley has previously said that he believed the company was employing too many people and not all of them were skilled in EV production.
“We are eliminating work, as well as reorganizing and simplifying functions throughout the business. You will hear more specifics from the leaders of your area of the business later this week,” Farley and Ford Chair Bill Ford wrote in an email.
Like other established automakers, Ford has a workforce largely hired to support a traditional combustion technology product lineup. Going forward, Farley has mapped out a strategy for Ford to develop a broad lineup of EVs. Like Tesla, Ford wants to generate more revenue through services that depend on digital software and connectivity, according to Yahoo Finance.
Backing up a bit
Ford recently set major goals on EV production. The company says it will have enough battery capacity to produce 600,000 EVs per year by 2023.
The Michigan-based car company announced that it has secured battery capacity and raw materials that will help it reach its targeted annual run rate of 600,000 electric vehicles by 2023 and more than 2 million a year by 2026. It also plans for more than half its global production to be EVs by 2030.
In order for Ford to reach its projected goals, they have to cut employees who cannot advance them farther into the EV space.
