Ford Offers Buyouts to All 41K Hourly Workers

All 41,000 hourly union workers at Ford plants have been offered buyout or retirement deals as the company seeks to slash its workforce. Ford is in better shape than GM or Chrysler, but still has more workers than it needs, according to a company spokesman. The company failed to persuade union workers to accept more concessions last month.

Only 1,000 workers took Ford up on a similar offer earlier this year, and with Ford's fortunes rising this year, union officials don't expect the latest offer to be any more popular. "They wanted us to take concessions, and then they turned around and gave stuff back to their people," one Ford worker tells the Detroit Free Press. "It's like a slap in the face." (More Ford stories.)