Big Expansion at Ford

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blue jobs street signFord Motor Co. plans to add 2,200 salaried jobs in the country, the U.S. automaker’s largest increase in those types of positions in more than a decade. In a statement Jan. 11, the nation’s second-ranked automaker said that the new jobs would be primarily in engineering, production, and IT.

Last year, Ford hired 8,100 new employees, in both salaried and hourly positions. This new addition will be the company’s highest record of adding salaried positions since 2001 when Ford added 3,300 new salaried jobs.

The new job plans will help Ford fulfill the promise it made to the United Auto Workers union during 2011 contract negotiations to add 12,000 U.S. jobs by 2015.

The automaker had previously pledged to add 2,350 hourly workers while it invests in and expands manufacturing plants across the country.

“We’re excited about the growth opportunity in 2013,” Joe Hinrichs, Ford’s president of the Americas, said during an interview on “In the Loop with Betty Liu” on Bloomberg Television. The hiring is “about supporting the introduction of great new products and the pace of those new products.”

During the first nine months of last year, Ford earned $6.47 billion before taxes in North America, according to the statement.

“The rebound in the U.S. market has given them more latitude to put more investments back in the product line and still be at the high end of their 8 to 10 percent margin guidance,” Analyst Brian Johnson said. “If investors are looking for 11 to 12 percent margins and growth, they’ll likely to be disappointed. Ford’s more likely to err on the side of keeping the brand franchise healthy.”

Ford employs around 172,000 workers and operates 65 plants worldwide.

By Shala Marks