The moves are expected to cost thousands of jobs in the automakers’ operations in Europe.
FRANKFURT, Germany —The headwinds buffeting the global auto industry made themselves felt in Europe on Thursday as mass-market carmaker Ford and luxury-focused Jaguar Land Rover announced sweeping restructurings that will cost thousands of jobs.
Ford Motor Co. said it will drop an unspecified number of jobs in Europe. Ford is refocusing on commercial trucks and SUVs and dumping less lucrative models while shifting production to electric cars in the long term.
The Dearborn, Michigan-based company said reductions would be achieved as far as possible through voluntary departures negotiated with unions and employee representatives. Ford of Europe, based in Cologne, Germany, has 53,000 people working for it directly and 68,000 when joint ventures such as those in Russia and Turkey are included.
The company’s new plans follow moves to close an automatic transmission plant in Bordeaux, combine administrative headquarters in Britain and end production of its C-Max models in Saarlouis, Germany.
One key headwind – slowing auto sales in China – was the big issue for Jaguar Land Rover. The company says it will cut 4,500 jobs, about 10 percent of its workforce, as it deals with the China downturn and growing uncertainty about Britain’s possible departure from the European Union without a negotiated trade deal. The company employs about 44,000 people in the U.K.
Global automakers must adjust to sweeping change expected from a move toward battery-powered and autonomous vehicles, and toward providing transportation as a service through ride-hailing and car-sharing smartphone apps. Meanwhile, government regulation in the EU and China are pushing them to develop more electric cars.
On top of that, consumer and business confidence have been hit by worries about Brexit and by the U.S.-China trade disputes.
The European announcements follow General Motors’ disclosure in November that it would lay off 14,000 factory and white-collar workers in North America and put five plants up for possible closure.
And Volkswagen has said it will see an unspecified number of job reductions as it changes three plants in Germany to production of electric vehicles.
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