Ford to Offer 75,000 Workers Buyouts

DETROIT, Sept 14, 2006; Poornima Gupta writing for Reuters reported that Ford Motor Co. will offer buyout packages of up to $140,000 to all of the more than 75,000 workers at its U.S. plants, the United Auto Workers union said on Thursday, a day before the automaker details a revised turnaround plan in response to slumping sales.

Meanwhile, two top Ford executives, including Americas Chief Operating Officer Anne Stevens, stepped down, just over a week after Alan Mulally took over as chief executive of the struggling automaker.

Ford shares closed down more than 1 percent, after trimming earlier losses triggered by a report that the automaker's own forecasts pointed to a loss of up to $9 billion this year.

Ford said it would announce its long-awaited update to its "Way Forward" restructuring plan on Friday.

In January, Ford had said it would cut up to 30,000 jobs and close 14 plants by 2012, but then said in July that slowing sales of its once highly profitable line of pickup trucks and SUVs had prompted it to move faster.

The number of workers the automaker will cut from its payroll in coming months will hinge on its success in attracting workers with the new round of buyout offers, which were modeled on a package offered by larger rival General Motors Corp.(GM.N: Quote, Profile, Research).

"The pressure for Ford to accelerate its current restructuring efforts has reached a crescendo," said Merrill Lynch analyst John Murphy, who has a neutral rating on Ford.