Ford cuts 4,000 jobs in Europe. Here are the reasons for the implosion

In essence, Ford urges European governments, trade unions and stakeholders to work together to support the transition to e-mobility. The historic US carmaker has essentially identified two problems: the mismatch between regulations on CO2 emissions and the (scarce) consumer demand for electric vehicles; and the lack of a clear political agenda to advance e-mobility in Europe and Germany. Finally, the American manufacturer appealed for clear policies: incentives for consumers, investment in recharging infrastructure, flexibility in emissions regulations and reduction of production costs.

Adolfo Urso, the Minister for Enterprise and Made in Italy, spoke on the Ford crisis. For the automotive sector 'the problem lies in Europe and in the crazy rules it has imposed on its companies and its work,' said the Minister for Enterprise and Made in Italy during question time at the Chamber of Deputies. "Ford plans to cut 4,000 workers in Europe, 3,000 in Germany alone," while "Volkswagen has already announced that it will close 3 of its 10 plants in Germany. Tens of thousands of blue-collar workers, engineers, have been laid off or are about to be laid off in European factories,' the minister recalled, pointing out that precisely for this reason 'we have defined with the Czech government a position paper that changes the trajectory by confirming the increasingly difficult, ambitious and challenging 2035 targets'. The paper 'will be presented on 28 November and we hope it will be endorsed'. Otherwise, car companies could face fines of up to 'EUR 15 billion (or heavy cuts in thermal car production, ed.), a boulder that would crush the European car industry,' Urso added.

Ford's is an industrial and employment tragedy foretold. Or rather, phoned in. And now with cuts of 4,000 jobs in Europe (say 4,000 families), Pandora's box is once again opened: the Oval is no longer blue, in the Old Continent. It is cyanotic, not breathing, almost in a coma with sales plunging in a haemorrhage of market share. Ford's market share in the Old Continent is now at 3%, when before Covid and the launch of suicidal strategies it was competing head-on with the other big European generalist manufacturers.

The reasons for this implosion are manifold: of course there are the policy impositions on electrics - which include limits on CO2 emissions - but there are also the aftermath of the perfect storm of the pandemic and the semiconductor crisis. Then there is more: a combination of bad choices in terms ofline-up, brand positioning and technology choices. All within a strategy that betrayed the legacy of Fordism and the idea of 'democratic' technological development: the car for all.

With the Fiesta gone, 16 million cars sold between 1976 and 2023, the Puma alone (eighteenth in the ranking in October, with 11,104 units, -21%) was not enough to compensate for attempts to push on the premium front. Not to mention the flop of the electric Mustang Mach-E, unfortunate because it was born in Covid times, but in fact unable to hold its own against the competition. All seasoned with ineffective communication and marketing strategies. Where has the simple, ingenious Ford of the C-Max, Kuga and Mondeo gone? Evaporated, giving customers to Skoda. And then the latest models made in Cologne, on Volkswagen's Meb platform. The Capri, in particular, sounds almost like an insult to the legendary coupé, symbol and icon of the 100-year-old European Ford. Which has perhaps come to an end.