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- Large car sales slumped 53% in last decade
- Firm recently received $42m from Government
- Ford 'to axe 240 jobs' on demand slump
The company - which recently received $42 million in Federal Government funding - said it would cut output from 260 to 209 cars a day to "more closely align production with current market demand", reported The Australian.
The jobs cuts will occur across the company's Victorian plants, at Broadmeadows and Geelong.
"The company will look to redeploy wherever possible, however the intent is to offer voluntary redundancy packages for those where redeployment to other areas is not an option," Ford Australia president Bob Graziano said.
Ford Australia returned to profitability in 2009. The company's results for the 2010 calendar year are yet to be posted but are expected to remain in the black.
The large car segment in Australia has suffered a 53 per cent sales slump over the past decade, with about 107,000 fewer family-sized vehicles being sold.
Read more about Ford job cuts at The Australian
At Toyota, effects of the devastating earthquake and tsunami in Japan mean manufacturing workers at its Altona plant will work a half-day shift from May 9.
Staff will be paid 75 per cent of their normal wages as the factory operates on a reduced schedule of 50 per cent, while a similar outlook is expected in June.
The announcement will affect 3300 staff who produce the Camry, Hybrid Camry and Orion models in Melbourne's west.
Toyota's manufacturing director Chris Harrod said the response was necessary to address short-term supply issues caused by the disaster.
"We intend to resume 100 per cent vehicle production as quickly as possible," Mr Harrod said.
The company has promised to minimise delivery delays.
