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UAW-represented factory workers at Ford Motor Co. have begun receiving $50,000 buyout offers under the company’s 2024 retirement incentive program.
The window for eligible employees to sign up for the special program began Monday and runs through March 1, Ford spokeswoman Jessica Enoch confirmed to the Detroit Free Press.
The program will provide a gross (pretax) lump-sum incentive payment of $50,000 for eligible skilled trade and production employees who retire during 2024, she said. There is no limit to the number of eligible employees who may participate.
To qualify, union members must have:
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30 years of service at any age, or
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55 years old with 10 years of service, or
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65 years old with 1 year of service
To be consistent with company precedent, Enoch said, the Dearborn automaker will extend the $50,000 buyout offer to UAW-represented employees who retired between Jan. 1 and Jan. 22.
She declined to provide any numbers related to current or future buyouts related to the UAW contract. Enoch told the Free Press that 2024 is the only buyout planned for these workers during this union contract.
The UAW negotiated this buyout program for all Detroit Three automakers but each company has different requirements and details. For example, Stellantis is offering a second lump sum buyout in 2026 and Ford said it is not.
Payments at Ford will begin in March after the application window closes, Enoch said. After that, payments will be made four to six weeks after an eligible employee’s retirement date, Enoch said.
For employees who sign up and are approved for the program, retirement dates will range between Jan. 1 and Dec. 1, 2024, she said. Retirement dates are generally the first day of the month. In limited instances, an employee’s retirement date might take into account operational needs at their manufacturing plant, Enoch said.
'Very significant' interest in buyouts
Todd Dunn, president of UAW Local 862 that represents the Kentucky Truck Plant and the Louisville Assembly Plant, told the Free Press on Tuesday that hundreds of Ford workers from Kentucky Truck have expressed interest in taking the buyout with many having left already. He estimated the total eligible there would be close to 1,200 by the end of 2024.
"They're notifying the company in large numbers that they want to retire," Dunn said. "I was told there were 20 skilled tradesmen in labor relations inquiring about the retirement package. This not only impacts production, it impacts skilled trades. This affects everything. There's a lot of planning involved."
Dunn led an estimated 9,000 Kentucky Truck members to the picket line last fall during the contentious contract negotiations with the Detroit Three, hitting Ford especially hard with a shutdown of Super Duty production. Ford was the first to make a deal with the UAW.