Buyout payments could reach $100,000 per employee, with an additional payment each year for four years to be used for college tuition. Although this may seem like a lot of money to some, it would leave people without job security or health benefits.
(Henry Ford…can the company he founded survive?)
There’s been a lot of news about auto-industry job losses. Ford is one company letting people go by the thousands. While some individuals at Ford may be scratching their heads and wondering what went wrong, others see it clearly.
“Had Ford listened to engineers, designers and lawyers regarding flaws found in their SUVs, they might not find themselves cutting losses,” shares June Cain Miller, a national TV and radio show host. “Instead, Ford ignored engineers who cited a center-of-gravity problem found in one of their SUVs, stating it might be a potential people-killer. And it was!”
Miller says ignoring this information has ruined the lives of many. She had to halt her career while her husband was hospitalized fighting for life, following a SUV accident. “With so many reported injuries due to rolling over, many consumers now view the SUV as gas-guzzling death traps,” says Miller. “Ford has ruined our lives. Had they heeded the warnings, they might not now be ruining the lives of so many of their employees.”
In early 2006, Ford offered buyouts to thousands of their employees in an effort to reduce cost. Their ultimate goal is to rid 30,000 employees by 2012. According to earlier reports by the Detroit News, buyout payments could reach $100,000 per employee, with an additional payment each year for four years to be used for college tuition. Although this may seem like a lot of money to some, it would leave people without job security or health benefits.
“Other problems stem from how the lawsuits associated with the SUV rollovers have been handled,” says Miller. “In our case, because the attorneys took the larger amount of the insulting meager settlement, the cost of daily travel to and from the hospital and the eventual prohibitive cost of home health care is not covered.”
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