Ford Almussafes has to cross the desert | Economy

The two-day shift ends and the stream of workers leaving Ford’s Almussafes plant continues unabated. It was an open secret, but the auto corporation did not clarify until last Tuesday that at the current workload, it estimated there were still 1,622 employees remaining at the plant, which, if a fourth ERE is approved, would be cut by more than half the workforce in four of the year. “There are a lot of people there and…

The two-day shift ends and the stream of workers leaving Ford’s Almussafes plant continues unabated. It has not been a secret, but the auto corporation did not clarify until last Tuesday that at current workloads, it estimates there are still 1,622 employees remaining at the plant, which, if a fourth ERE is approved, would be cut by more than half the workforce in four years. “There are a lot of people, but not enough work. The mood is bad because people are still on ERTE (there are already 16 of them) and there is a lot of uncertainty about the future,” they admit. They believe that the negotiations will be successful in the coming weeks. “There is talk of activating the RED mechanism—with temporary support measures to avoid layoffs—and if done, it would be a fallback route for the company until a new hybrid vehicle is produced,” Ford announced for 2027. clarifies another company representative. plant operator.

“We’ve been through a lot already. This is the fourth ERE since 2020 in Almussafes and people are waiting for decisions. The staff must know when and how it will end. This is the general feeling,” explains the president of the Almussafes works council, Carlos Faubel of UGT. The union, which constitutes the majority of the company, held a meeting of workers this Saturday, to which they came not in war paint, but to resolve their doubts and debates, and to endorse the proposal that they will bring to the negotiating table this Monday, in June. 17. “The transformation of the car is as profound as never before. If we already had an electrified plant (this was planned for 2026, but Ford to freeze investments due to low sales expectations), we will now have a more serious problem,” says Faubel.

The trump card that the American multinational corporation has in these negotiations is the production for three years in Almussafes of 300,000 hybrid cars per year, the same number of engines and battery assembly, but until then there are 626 structural positions left out of a workforce of 4,700 people. by company numbers. The remaining thousand included in this latest ERE could be saved for a new model, but the company’s offer to fire them with compensation equal to 20 days per year of service to rehire them later is not accepted. In fact, at the aforementioned workers’ meeting this Saturday, participants unanimously rejected the company’s approach and demanded conditions similar to those in the previous settlement, reports Europa Press.

The situation worries not only the plant personnel, but also an entire conglomerate of suppliers working for the American multinational corporation. In the Valencian Community alone there are more than a hundred companies linked to the automotive sector and 25,000 jobs directly linked to the oval company, although real efforts have been made over the years to diversify customer products and services. . “Working for Ford has been and remains a privilege, but the diversification we have promoted has been a key factor in minimizing the impact of production cuts at the Valencia plant,” admits the President of the Valencia Automotive Cluster (AVIA). , businessman Francisco Segura.

“The data shows that EV sales expectations are well below expectations. In this context, I believe that Ford’s commitment to a hybrid vehicle is right, given the uncertainty that an electric vehicle creates,” adds Segura, who has no doubt that the future of mobility involves electrification. As this moment approaches, AVIA, which continues to focus on learning and innovation among its partners, is turning to government administrations for financial support so that companies can invest and prepare for 2027. “We need funding to bridge this gap,” Segura warns. And remember that the arrival of Power Co. – a member of the cluster, like Ford – with the installation of a battery production plant in Sagunto will become a lifesaver for the Valencian Community.

State administrations are also looking askance and with concern at the future of the plant and auxiliary industries, which together make up 8% of the region’s GDP. The Generalitat of Valencia, chaired by Carlos Mason of the PP, demanded that the Spanish government activate the network mechanism to mitigate the number of layoffs through ERTE or reduction of working hours, among other measures. In a few days they will create a working group to develop solutions. Ford was a benchmark for the automotive sector in the Valencian Community and the rest of Spain: during its golden era, it employed 10,000 people and saw up to five different models of the brand roll off its assembly lines, producing 400,000 units annually. . anus. Now it has been left alone to produce the Ford Kuga, cutting its workforce and freezing investment in electrification. not for an indefinite period. Hence the concern because Ford is Valencia’s great export card along with the agri-food industry.

According to industry sources, from 2012 to the present, the American multinational corporation has received about 185 million euros from the Generalitat for training and innovation. “We ask the Spanish government not to ignore its obligations, since there are very important mechanisms that it can provide, such as the network mechanism,” insists Valencian President Carlos Mason.

Sources in the Ministry of Industry and Trade, having learned the latest ERE news, assure that the award for the new car for 2027 is “the result of the efforts and joint work of Ford, workers and public administrations”, and insist that from the Spanish government: “We are in constant dialogue with company and employees to help them during this period of transition to electric vehicles.” They announce that they will shortly consider, together with the company, employees and other administrations, possible mechanisms that the current law provides for these transitional situations.”

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