Ford will cut 3,500 jobs at its plant in Saarlouis, Germany, after reaching an agreement with German union IG Metall.
The Saarlouis site currently builds the Ford Focus but the carmaker plans to kill off the iconic hatchback in 2025 as announced in mid-2022. The factory had been considered as a potential site for the firm’s next-generation of EVs but Ford ultimately opted to build these vehicles at its plant in Valencia, Spain, leaving the German plant without a single model to produce.
Speaking on the matter earlier this week, IG Metall announced that approximately 1,000 jobs would be retained at Saarlouis after 2025, although it is not yet clear what positions these employees will hold. The union added there would be no forced layoffs until 2032. In addition, employees will be able to leave early with a well-funded severance deal, Auto News Europe reports.
“We could not achieve the best solution so we decided to make do with the second-best option: to make job cuts as expensive as possible for Ford,” district manager of IG Metall Mitte Joerg Koehlinger said.
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The long-term future of the Saarlouis plant remains unclear. Last year it was reported that a handful of Chinese carmakers, including BYD and Chery, were among the companies interested in taking over the factory. Ford also held talks with a German solar panel manufacturer but as of October 2023, the site was on course for closure after these talks fell through.
Given that the Focus won’t be around for much longer, it’s little surprise that it has received very few updates over the past couple of years. With that being said, Ford did introduce a new optional Track Pack for the flagship ST model in late 2022 that includes adjustable KW suspension, new Brembo brakes, and a special set of 19-inch wheels.
