White smoke hung over the employment regulation dossier at Ford in Almussafes as the ninth meeting of the process unfolded. The talks, occurring one month and a day after the process was notified, affect more than 1,100 workers. The multinational company finally secured an agreement with the factory’s main union, the UGT, to establish early retirement from age 53. This time, the conditions improved on those discussed at Monday’s session, offering better terms for those choosing early withdrawals.
The key elements of the agreement include unemployment benefits extended up to age 57 rising from 70 percent to 75 percent. The possibility of retirement at age 53 or 54 remains, and from age 57 the base salary increase will rise to 80 percent. A notable enhancement is that the bonus period will stretch to 62 years for early retirement at age 53 and to 63 years for retirement at age 54, each scenario representing one additional year beyond the Monday proposal.
Around the measures aimed at younger workers, the changes introduce a stronger incentive to leave. The most significant adjustment is a gross additional payout of 40,000 euros for workers aged 54 or younger who depart before June 30. This amount is more than double the compensation discussed at the previous Friday meeting, which was estimated at 20,000 euros. The intention is to provide a fair incentive for those who voluntarily join the early retirement program during the window from July 1 to September 30, ensuring a clearly defined extra for early exiters.
The arrangement also confirms the standard severance framework of forty-five days of pay per year of service, with a cap equivalent to 42 months of salary. In addition, a severance supplement is included, although the finalization of the timing for that supplement was adjusted to a deadline of April 30 rather than December 31, as some earlier proposals had suggested. The overall package, when viewed together with the revised retirement ages, enhanced unemployment supports, and the substantial early exit bonus, is designed to balance workforce reductions with fair transitions for affected employees.