Ford to cut around 2,300 jobs in Germany
Around 1,300, or one in five, UK jobs to go
Electric cars require less labour, Ford says
No compulsory redundancies in Cologne, Aachen before 2032

BERLIN, Feb 14 Reuters Ford plans to cut one in nine jobs in product development and administration across Europe as part of a global drive to cut costs and be competitive in the electric vehicle market, the U.S. automaker said on Tuesday.

Around 3,800 jobs will be cut in total, including 2,300 at the carmaker39;s Cologne and Aachen sites in Germany, 1,300 in the UK and 200 in the rest of Europe, the company said, adding it intended to achieve the reductions through voluntary programmes.

The news comes as a blow to unions who said in late January the worstcase scenario was 2,500 job cuts in Europe in product development and a further 700 in administration.

Still, the carmaker agreed to no compulsory redundancies at its Cologne or Aachen sites before the end of 2032, providing some relief to workers, works council chair Benjamin Gruschka said on a press call.

Workers know that the reduced model palette in coming years means fewer jobs. The exclusion of operational redundancies provides safety we are not kicking anyone out, Gruschka said.

Ford is spending 50 billion on electrifying its product range, pivoting to a slimmer lineup with higher prices to compensate for rising costs of producing electric cars.

Chief Financial Officer John Lawler warned in early February that the…