Laid off from Ford.
Ford's salaried workforce has been shrinking for years without a single defining round, a team here, five percent there. The quiet cadence makes the paper trail thinner and your own vigilance more important.
At a glance
What's known about Ford severance and layoffs
- 20,000+, about 19% · Detroit Three salaried jobs cut from recent peaks
- About 5% · Connected-vehicle software team cut, May 2025
- 4,000 · European roles cut in the 2024 announcement
- Not published · U.S. salaried severance formula
- 1,600 · Kentucky battery plant jobs cut, February 2026
- 95% of after-tax pay · SUB pay under the 2023 UAW agreement
- 52 weeks each · SUB then TAP on indefinite layoff
- About 169,000 · Ford employees worldwide, 2025 annual report
Recent Ford layoffs
Ford's Kentucky battery joint venture cut 1,600 jobs
In February 2026, BlueOvalSK Battery Park in Glendale, Kentucky let 1,600 workers go, on a layoff date of February 14. Those jobs sat with the joint venture rather than with Ford Motor Company, and a wholly owned Ford subsidiary took the two Kentucky plants when the venture wound up in May 2026. Ford Energy plans to hire more than 2,100 workers at the retooled plant, and former employees are eligible to be rehired.
Previous rounds
Ford layoff history
If you're working out what Ford owes you, the shape of its cuts matters more than the total. They've come in separate pieces under separate rules. About 3,000 white-collar jobs went in August 2022, 2,000 salaried and 1,000 on contract, roughly 6 percent of the salaried workforce in the United States and Canada. About 350 connected-vehicle software jobs followed in May 2025, about 5 percent of that team. Ford said in 2024 that it would cut 4,000 jobs in Europe by 2027. Then 1,600 workers at the Kentucky battery plant were let go in February 2026.
That last one is worth separating out, because the employer wasn't Ford Motor Company. BlueOval SK was a joint venture Ford formed with SK On and SK Battery America to run one Tennessee plant and two in Kentucky, and the people let go worked for the venture. Ford's own 8-K records what happened next, that its stake was redeemed at a closing in May 2026 and a wholly owned subsidiary, Ford Energy Battery, took the two Kentucky plants along with a $3.8 billion note payable to the Department of Energy. Workers were told in mid-December not to come back, weeks ahead of the February date, and Kentucky's governor's office reported a job fair that drew nearly 700 of them to more than 60 employers, where fifteen left with offers.
For anyone under the UAW agreement, the income security is written down, which makes it the rare part of this you can check before you need it. The union's summary of the 2023 contract puts SUB pay at 95 percent of after-tax pay and the Short Work Week benefit at 80 percent of base hourly rate, with eligibility after three calendar months of service and the company funding the program for the length of the agreement. Members with three months of contiguous service get 52 weeks of SUB followed by 52 weeks of Transition Assistance Plan benefit, at 50 percent of gross hourly wages, if they land on indefinite layoff. One change worth knowing is that SUB payments no longer wait on the state's decision, though you still file that claim yourself.
Placement moves slower than the money, and it lives in a different document. The joint UAW-Ford Job Security Program describes job placement and temporary income security for people hit by indefinite layoff or defined as surplus. The same program page sets out preferential placement arrangements covering workers laid off by a permanent discontinuance of operations or a reduction in force where the company and the union agree there's no reasonable likelihood of recall, a return to basic unit arrangement for people from closed locations who want back to their home plant or another in the same zone, and a national committee that coordinates movement between zones and can discuss moving employees ahead of a scheduled job loss. That page publishes the language as appendices to the 2015 agreement, and the union's summary of the 2023 agreement doesn't restate it. All of it runs on a joint determination between the company and the union, so ask your local which provisions apply to you now.
Salaried employees have less to read. The one company-confirmed description of Ford severance on record came in October 2022, when a spokesperson said an updated policy let certain employees leave with severance instead of entering the Performance Enhancement Plan, with payouts based on length of employment, continuation of benefits, and career transition services. No formula, multiplier, or amount was published with it, and the same reporting noted that employees who went through the plan instead could be terminated without severance. Ford reported about 169,000 employees worldwide in its 2025 annual report, and CNBC put the company roughly 5,300 salaried workers below its 2020 peak, at about 30,700 white-collar employees, a reduction Ford declined to discuss. Our tracker holds 9 all-time filings under Ford Motor's own name and 0 filings covering 0 jobs since the start of 2025, so the WARN record is a thin guide here. If a separation agreement or release does reach you, read it against the plan documents it points to, because that 2022 description is history rather than a standing promise.
Reporting on previous Ford layoff rounds
February 2026 · 1,600 workers let go at BlueOvalSK Battery Park in Glendale, Kentucky, jobs that sat with the joint venture rather than with Ford Motor Company. Former employees are eligible to be rehired at the retooled plant, which isn't an offer
May 2025 · About 350 connected-vehicle software jobs in the United States and Canada, about 5% of that team, per two people familiar with the decision
November 2024 · 4,000 jobs in Europe by 2027, announced in 2024 and restated in later reporting
2022 through 2023 · About 3,000 white-collar jobs in August 2022, 2,000 salaried and 1,000 on contract, about 6% of the salaried workforce in the United States and Canada
Terms not published. Separately, in late 2022 certain underperforming salaried employees were offered severance instead of a performance plan, with payouts based on length of employment, continuation of benefits, and career transition services. That policy update isn't established as the package for the August reduction, and no formula was published with it.
How Ford's layoffs compare to other companies
Ford's reductions arrived as separately announced pieces, about 3,000 white-collar jobs in August 2022, 4,000 European roles announced in 2024, and about 350 connected-vehicle software jobs in May 2025. The 2022 severance-or-performance-plan offer to underperformers remains the one public glimpse of its internal terms on record.
What to do after being laid off from Ford
- File for unemployment in the state where you worked. Benefits run from your filing date, and severance usually doesn't block you. Ford's biggest hubs: Michigan, Kentucky, Missouri. Somewhere else? Every state is here.
- Apply for financial and hardship assistance. Unemployment supplements income, but food benefits, health coverage and utility help are often available as well. Here's some of what Ford's hub states run: Michigan, Kentucky, Missouri, and every other state is here.
- Mind the health insurance window. Losing coverage opens a 60-day special enrollment period, and an ACA plan usually beats unsubsidized COBRA. Compare your options before the employer coverage lapses, and read how the COBRA clocks run if you are weighing it seriously.
- Get your real runway number. Severance plus savings divided by reality. The calculator takes five minutes.
- Know which clocks are already running. Severance review windows, COBRA election, visa grace periods, and 401(k) rollovers all run on federal deadlines that started at termination. All five deadlines are here.
Ford layoff and severance questions
What severance does Ford pay salaried employees?
No formula for salaried severance appears in the reporting on record. The one company-confirmed description came in October 2022, when Ford said certain employees could leave with severance instead of entering its Performance Enhancement Plan, with payouts based on length of employment, continuation of benefits, and career transition services. None of those three came with a number attached. If a separation is offered to you, the separation agreement and the plan documents it points to are what set your terms, and they may differ from that 2022 description.
Are Ford's layoffs one big round or ongoing?
Ongoing, and rarely under one banner. The record holds about 3,000 white-collar jobs in August 2022, 4,000 European roles announced in 2024, about 350 connected-vehicle software jobs in May 2025, and 1,600 at the Kentucky battery joint venture in February 2026. Our tracker holds nine all-time filings under Ford Motor's own name and none since the start of 2025, and a cut made by a differently named employer, like that Kentucky joint venture, won't turn up in a search on Ford's name. Keep your own runway math current.
What's SUB pay, and how long does it last after a Ford layoff?
Supplemental Unemployment Benefit pay tops up state unemployment for eligible UAW-represented members. The union's summary of the 2023 agreement puts SUB at 95 percent of after-tax pay, with eligibility after three calendar months of service. Members with three months of contiguous service get 52 weeks of SUB followed by 52 weeks of Transition Assistance Plan benefit, which runs at 50 percent of gross hourly wages, if they're placed on indefinite layoff. Those terms cover eligible UAW-represented members, and they establish nothing for nonrepresented salaried employees. You still file the state claim yourself.
Can I transfer to another Ford plant instead of being laid off?
For represented workers there's machinery for it, though nothing automatic. The joint UAW-Ford Job Security Program describes job placement and temporary income security for people hit by indefinite layoff or defined as surplus, preferential placement where the company and the union agree there's no reasonable likelihood of recall, and a return to basic unit arrangement for people from closed locations. The program page publishes that language as appendices to the 2015 agreement, and the union's summary of the 2023 agreement doesn't restate it. Each of those turns on a joint determination between the company and the union, so ask your local which provisions apply to you now.
Were the BlueOval SK battery plant layoffs Ford layoffs?
Not under Ford Motor Company's name. BlueOval SK was a joint venture Ford formed with SK On and SK Battery America, and the 1,600 people let go in February 2026 worked for the venture. Ford's own filing shows a wholly owned subsidiary took over the two Kentucky plants at a closing in May 2026. The distinction matters if you're checking a WARN tracker or asking whose severance policy applies, because the employer of record was the venture.
Where do I file for unemployment after being laid off from Ford?
In the state where you worked, not where the company is headquartered. Ford's biggest U.S. hubs are Michigan, Kentucky, Missouri. Severance usually doesn't block you from filing, and benefits run from your filing date, so file the same week.
Is it OK to file for unemployment after a layoff at Ford?
Yes. Unemployment insurance is funded by payroll taxes employers pay on wages, the claim never appears on credit reports or background checks, and future employers cannot see it. If the hesitation itself is the obstacle, whether filing is OK has its own article.
What happens to my health insurance after a layoff at Ford?
Your plan sets the end date rather than the law, so the separation packet is where that date actually lives, and it is often the last day of the month rather than your last day of work. After coverage ends, COBRA lets you keep the identical plan by paying the whole premium yourself, up to 102 percent of what the plan really costs, which lands as several times the payroll deduction you were used to. You get 60 days to elect, counted from the later of coverage ending or the election notice arriving, and electing reaches the coverage back to the day the old plan stopped so no gap exists. How continuation coverage works walks the timing, and whether to take it rather than a marketplace plan is a separate decision.
Should I sign the severance agreement right away?
First pin down how much review time you actually have. If you're 40 or older, federal law gives you 21 days to consider an agreement that waives age claims, 45 in a group layoff, and a waiver signed under a shorter deadline can be invalid. If you're under 40, no federal window applies and the deadline in your packet may be real, so confirm it in writing and ask for more time if you need it. Use whatever window you have to read the release terms, especially non-disparagement and no-lawsuit clauses, and don't stall past a real deadline, because offers can be withdrawn.
Can I collect unemployment if I got severance from Ford?
Usually yes, though some states delay benefits until severance pay periods end, and lump sums are treated differently than salary continuation. Check your state's rules on our state benefit pages, and file immediately either way so your claim date is locked in.