Job cuts hit one of South Africa’s biggest carmakers
Automaker Ford South Africa has given official notice of its intention to retrench employees as part of a “realignment” to match market demand.
The group has given notice that 470 positions will be impacted, affecting workers at the Silverton plant in Pretoria and the Struandale engine plant in Gqeberha.
According to the notice, as reported by trade union Solidarity, Ford says the job losses follow a “realignment” of its production capacity to match current and expected market demands.
This means terminating 391 operator positions in Silverton, 73 at Struandale and 10 administrative positions.
While the retrenchment notice comes as the wider automotive sector is being hit export tariffs to the United States, Ford SA told BusinessTech that its local operation does not export to the US.
Instead, the group said that it is “making necessary adjustments” to its manufacturing operations as part of ongoing efforts to optimise production.
“We regret that these essential plant adjustments will result in a reduction of positions across both facilities,” it said.
“We understand the impact this has on our valued employees, and we are committed to supporting those affected. As part of this process, we will be offering voluntary separation options.”
Ford said it is committed to transparent and respectful engagement with its employees and is currently consulting with representative unions through the required consultative processes regarding these proposed changes.
Tariffs hitting South Africa’s auto sector
While the Ford retrenchments are not related to the US tariffs, Solidarity said that it expects more retrenchments in the wider automotive sector to follow.
Solidarity said it would use the consultation process with Ford to determine the exact cause of the “drastic reduction” in vehicle sales, warning that it is likely the just the beginning.
“We see this announcement as possibly the beginning of greater job losses facing the entire automotive industry in South Africa,” said Willie Venter, deputy general secretary of Solidarity.
According to Venter, economic pressures, international political uncertainties, and the government’s unfavourable policies are causing the industry to become increasingly less competitive.
“When an automotive giant like Ford takes such drastic steps, it is a warning to the entire industry.”
“We fear that further retrenchments in this industry may be inevitable if conditions do not improve quickly,” he said.
In April the Trump administration announced a 25% tariff on automotive exports to the United States on top of a 10% universal tariff that took effect that same month.
In August, following the South African government’s failure to secure a trade deal with the US, a 30% tariff was put into effect, taking the cumululative tariff on South Africa’s auto sector to 55%.
The impact of the initial tariff had already been felt with vehicle exports to the US plunging and various manufacturing businesses related to the sector being forced to shut their doors.
South Africa’s vehicle and parts exports to the United States declined by 55% in the 2025 year-to-date compared to the same period last year, according to a report from the United States’ Census Bureau on international trade in goods and services.
In 2024, South African exports of vehicles and vehicle parts accounted for 15% of all exports to the United States.
The impact of the Trump tariffs translates to total vehicle and vehicle parts exports falling from R17.7 billion in 2024 to only R8 billion in 2025.
Economists have long warned that while the wider impact of the tariffs on South Africa’s economy is likely to be relatively small—with only 8% of exports going to the US—specific sectors like the auto and agricultural sector will feel the pain more acutely.
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