Ford Motor Co. Executive Chairman Bill Ford called on autoworkers to come together to end a monthlong strike that he says could cost the company the ability to invest in the future.
In a rare speech during contract talks in the company’s hometown of Dearborn, Michigan, Ford said high labor costs could limit spending to develop new vehicles and invest in factories. “It’s the absolute lifeblood of our company. And if we lose it, we will lose to the competition. America loses. Many jobs will be lost,” said the great grandson of company founder Henry Ford.
The company, he said, builds more vehicles in America and has more United Auto Workers employees than any company, which has increased its costs in a highly competitive industry.
Ford has 57,000 UAW workers compared with 46,000 at GM and 43,000 at Stellantis. “Many of our competitors moved jobs to Mexico as we added jobs here in the U.S.,” Ford said.
That’s just salary.
His other compensations, benefits, and free services like company jets and private dining, provide a very significant increase of their own.
C-level compensation is never merely in pay, there’s a whole incredibly expensive ecosystem to support as well.
And, in addition to his surprising decision to pay himself more than his predecessor, he was a major stock holder before he took over the position, so he’s getting dividends and stockholder equity as well.
Heyyyy, wait a minute.
Didn’t he decide to do a stock buyback with company funds? 3.5 billion worth over the past decade? $400 million in the last year?
Weren’t those things considered the kind of market manipulation that helped cause the Great Depression?