Ford Motor Co. said Tuesday that it will hire 3,000 salaried employees this year, 800 more than originally planned, as it moves to fill positions in engineering and other technical areas.
Of the new hires, 2,400 will be professionals for product development, manufacturing, quality, purchasing and information technology, according to a statement.
“Engineers and technical professionals are in as much demand as our cars, trucks and SUVs,” Felicia Fields,group vice president for human resources, said in the statement. About half of the positions have been filled already, according to the statement.
Ford is expanding as industry wide U.S. new-vehicle sales have increased for 25 consecutive months, according to Bloomberg Industries. The second-largest U.S. automaker by vehicle sales has been the biggest gainer of market share in 2013’s first half on strong demand for the Fusion family car and F-Series pickups.
Chief Executive Officer Alan Mulally has led Ford to 16 consecutive quarters of net income after supervising a restructuring without the bankruptcies that befell the predecessors of General Motors Co. and Chrysler Group LLC. Mulally, 67, has increased profits by selling the same models worldwide, rather than different versions for various regions.
Ford fell 0.6 percent to $16.94 at the close in New York. The shares have gained 31 percent this year, compared with a 19 percent advance for the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index.
Business, Pages 30 on 07/25/2013