{"id":87694,"date":"2026-02-13T19:01:35","date_gmt":"2026-02-13T22:01:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/automotive.einnews.com\/article\/892197177"},"modified":"2026-02-13T19:01:35","modified_gmt":"2026-02-13T22:01:35","slug":"major-automaker-is-paying-workers-substantially-higher-bonuses","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/2026\/02\/13\/major-automaker-is-paying-workers-substantially-higher-bonuses\/","title":{"rendered":"Major Automaker Is Paying Workers Substantially Higher Bonuses"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<div class=\"tw:border-b tw:border-slate-200 tw:pb-4\">\n<h2 class=\"tw:mt-0 tw:mb-1 tw:text-2xl tw:font-heading\">Key Takeaways<\/h2>\n<ul class=\"tw:font-normal tw:font-serif tw:text-base tw:marker:text-slate-400\">\n<li>Ford is lifting its companywide bonus factor to 130% of target, the highest level in years.<\/li>\n<li>The richer bonus pool is mainly driven by improved \u201cinitial quality,\u201d or how well a car performs within the first few months of ownership.<\/li>\n<li>Around 75,000 global salaried employees are eligible for the 130% companywide factor.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.entrepreneur.com\/business-news\/ford-ceo-slams-teslas-silicon-valley-cybertruck\/454564\">Ford<\/a> is sharply <a href=\"https:\/\/www.entrepreneur.com\/business-news\/mark-cuban-all-employees-should-receive-stock-awards\/498278\">increasing bonuses<\/a> for thousands of salaried workers after hitting decade\u2011best vehicle quality targets. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.entrepreneur.com\/business-news\/ford-is-getting-tough-on-longterm-underperforming-workers\/438206\">The automaker<\/a> will give its employees their largest bonuses in years when it distributes payments next month.<\/p>\n<p>According to a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/business\/world-at-work\/ford-boosts-companywide-bonus-initial-quality-improves-sources-say-2026-02-11\/\">recent Reuters report<\/a>, Ford is setting its companywide salaried bonus at 130% of target for 2025 performance, up from 84% for 2023 and 69% for 2024. The higher payout covers 75,000 salaried employees globally, ranging from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.entrepreneur.com\/business-news\/ex-meta-staff-says-software-engineers-make-3-common-mistakes\/494921\">engineers<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.entrepreneur.com\/business-news\/this-is-what-a-google-ai-product-manager-tells-people-who-want-her-6-figure-job\">product managers<\/a> to corporate executives.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The company calculates bonuses by taking a percentage of base pay and multiplying it by the companywide factor. For example, a worker with a 10% target bonus on a $100,000 salary would receive $13,000 on a 130% multiplier.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Individual bonuses still depend on job level, performance and specific compensation package, so not every salaried employee will receive the same dollar amount, even under the same 130% factor, per Reuters.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-why-ford-increased-bonuses\">Why Ford increased bonuses<\/h2>\n<p>A strong improvement in \u201cinitial quality\u201d \u2014 measured by the number of repairs needed in the first 90 days or how well the car performs in the first few months of ownership \u2014 is driving the bigger bonuses. Ford says initial quality is now at its best level in about a decade, according to Reuters.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Initial quality is one of the core metrics that feed into Ford\u2019s annual bonus formula, alongside financial performance and strategic goals like electric vehicle sales. After years of costly recalls and elevated warranty expenses, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.entrepreneur.com\/business-news\/ford-ceo-cant-fill-5000-open-jobs-six-figure-salary\">Ford leaders<\/a> decided to make quality a part of compensation.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Ford CEO Jim Farley initiated the change in 2023 after experiencing high recall numbers \u2014&nbsp;Ford was the <a href=\"https:\/\/fordauthority.com\/2022\/12\/ford-takes-most-recalled-manufacturer-crown-for-2022\/\">most recalled car manufacturer<\/a> in 2022&nbsp;\u2014 and significant warranty costs of around <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2024\/04\/24\/ford-f-earnings-q1-2024.html\">$1.9 billion<\/a> that year. Yet 91% of managers were earning their full bonus in 2023.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo now, that is not the case,\u201d Farley said at a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.axios.com\/2024\/02\/15\/ford-jim-farley-quality-issues\">Wolfe Research investor conference<\/a> in February 2024. \u201cYou have to set up a culture shift, a performance reward system where every engineering manager, purchasing component manager, every plant manager is fully accountable for the quality and cost of their work.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img data-opt-id=758893364  fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/ywAAAAAAQABAAACAUwAOw==\" fifu-lazy=\"1\" fifu-data-sizes=\"auto\" fifu-data-srcset=\"https:\/\/mlmjbqro95r8.i.optimole.com\/cb:bOxR.6a5\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.entrepreneur.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/02\/Jim-Farley-GettyImages-2237912784.jpg?w=1024&ssl=1&w=75&resize=75&ssl=1 75w, https:\/\/mlmjbqro95r8.i.optimole.com\/cb:bOxR.6a5\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.entrepreneur.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/02\/Jim-Farley-GettyImages-2237912784.jpg?w=1024&ssl=1&w=100&resize=100&ssl=1 100w, https:\/\/mlmjbqro95r8.i.optimole.com\/cb:bOxR.6a5\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.entrepreneur.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/02\/Jim-Farley-GettyImages-2237912784.jpg?w=1024&ssl=1&w=150&resize=150&ssl=1 150w, https:\/\/mlmjbqro95r8.i.optimole.com\/cb:bOxR.6a5\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.entrepreneur.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/02\/Jim-Farley-GettyImages-2237912784.jpg?w=1024&ssl=1&w=240&resize=240&ssl=1 240w, https:\/\/mlmjbqro95r8.i.optimole.com\/cb:bOxR.6a5\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.entrepreneur.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/02\/Jim-Farley-GettyImages-2237912784.jpg?w=1024&ssl=1&w=320&resize=320&ssl=1 320w, https:\/\/mlmjbqro95r8.i.optimole.com\/cb:bOxR.6a5\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.entrepreneur.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/02\/Jim-Farley-GettyImages-2237912784.jpg?w=1024&ssl=1&w=500&resize=500&ssl=1 500w, https:\/\/mlmjbqro95r8.i.optimole.com\/cb:bOxR.6a5\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.entrepreneur.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/02\/Jim-Farley-GettyImages-2237912784.jpg?w=1024&ssl=1&w=640&resize=640&ssl=1 640w, https:\/\/mlmjbqro95r8.i.optimole.com\/cb:bOxR.6a5\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.entrepreneur.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/02\/Jim-Farley-GettyImages-2237912784.jpg?w=1024&ssl=1&w=800&resize=800&ssl=1 800w, https:\/\/mlmjbqro95r8.i.optimole.com\/cb:bOxR.6a5\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.entrepreneur.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/02\/Jim-Farley-GettyImages-2237912784.jpg?w=1024&ssl=1&w=1024&resize=1024&ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/mlmjbqro95r8.i.optimole.com\/cb:bOxR.6a5\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.entrepreneur.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/02\/Jim-Farley-GettyImages-2237912784.jpg?w=1024&ssl=1&w=1280&resize=1280&ssl=1 1280w, https:\/\/mlmjbqro95r8.i.optimole.com\/cb:bOxR.6a5\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.entrepreneur.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/02\/Jim-Farley-GettyImages-2237912784.jpg?w=1024&ssl=1&w=1600&resize=1600&ssl=1 1600w\" height=\"683\" width=\"1024\" fifu-data-src=\"https:\/\/mlmjbqro95r8.i.optimole.com\/cb:bOxR.6a5\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.entrepreneur.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/02\/Jim-Farley-GettyImages-2237912784.jpg?w=1024&ssl=1\" alt=\"Jim Farley, president and chief executive officer of Ford Motor Co., at Ford Pro Accelerate in Detroit, Michigan, US, on Tuesday, Sept. 30, 2025. The event convenes a group of leaders to discuss productivity solutions for the \"essential economy,\" made up of 95 million workers across 3 million businesses in construction, manufacturing, service, energy, and logistics. Photographer: Jeff Kowalsky\/Bloomberg\" class=\"wp-image-415582\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Jim Farley. Photographer: Jeff Kowalsky\/Bloomberg<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-contrast-with-hourly-workers\">Contrast with hourly workers<\/h2>\n<p>Ford runs two parallel systems: performance-driven bonuses for salaried staff and negotiated profit-sharing for hourly workers. While salaried bonuses are jumping, hourly workers who are part of the United Auto Workers union will see a smaller profit-sharing check compared to last year. <\/p>\n<p>Ford reported earlier this week that hourly workers will receive profit-sharing checks of up to $6,780 for 2025, down from $10,208 the previous year. Ford spokeswoman Jessica Enoch told the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.courier-journal.com\/story\/money\/companies\/2026\/02\/10\/uaw-workers-at-ford-to-see-lowest-profit-sharing-checks-in-three-years\/88613297007\/?gnt-cfr=1&amp;gca-cat=p&amp;gca-uir=false&amp;gca-epti=z115236p001450c001450u114336v115236&amp;gca-ft=266&amp;gca-ds=sophi\"><em>Detroit Free Press<\/em><\/a> that 56,300 active hourly employees and another 1,490 employees who retired in 2025 may be eligible for a profit-sharing payment.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The automaker posted a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2026\/02\/10\/business\/ford-earnings-electric-vehicles.html\">loss of $8.2 billion<\/a> for 2025, driven mostly by one-time <a href=\"https:\/\/finance.yahoo.com\/news\/ford-q4-results-hit-by-tariffs-and-ev-losses-but-investors-focus-on-improved-outlook-160001249.html\">electric vehicle charges<\/a>, plus <a href=\"https:\/\/www.entrepreneur.com\/business-news\/walmart-ceo-says-shoppers-will-see-higher-prices-soon\/491708\">tariffs<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.motortrend.com\/news\/ford-2025-financial-year-issues\">a major supplier fire<\/a>.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><em>Sign up for the <\/em>Entrepreneur Daily<em> newsletter to get the news and resources you need to know today to help you run your business better. <\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/info.entrepreneur.com\/daily-newsletter-sign-up-page?utm_campaign=Web-Visitors&amp;utm_source=Article&amp;utm_medium=Text-CTA\"><em>Get it in your inbox.<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"tw:border-b tw:border-slate-200 tw:pb-4\">\n<h2 class=\"tw:mt-0 tw:mb-1 tw:text-2xl tw:font-heading\">Key Takeaways<\/h2>\n<ul class=\"tw:font-normal tw:font-serif tw:text-base tw:marker:text-slate-400\">\n<li>Ford is lifting its companywide bonus factor to 130% of target, the highest level in years.<\/li>\n<li>The richer bonus pool is mainly driven by improved \u201cinitial quality,\u201d or how well a car performs within the first few months of ownership.<\/li>\n<li>Around 75,000 global salaried employees are eligible for the 130% companywide factor.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.entrepreneur.com\/business-news\/ford-ceo-slams-teslas-silicon-valley-cybertruck\/454564\">Ford<\/a> is sharply <a href=\"https:\/\/www.entrepreneur.com\/business-news\/mark-cuban-all-employees-should-receive-stock-awards\/498278\">increasing bonuses<\/a> for thousands of salaried workers after hitting decade\u2011best vehicle quality targets. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.entrepreneur.com\/business-news\/ford-is-getting-tough-on-longterm-underperforming-workers\/438206\">The automaker<\/a> will give its employees their largest bonuses in years when it distributes payments next month.<\/p>\n<p>According to a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/business\/world-at-work\/ford-boosts-companywide-bonus-initial-quality-improves-sources-say-2026-02-11\/\">recent Reuters report<\/a>, Ford is setting its companywide salaried bonus at 130% of target for 2025 performance, up from 84% for 2023 and 69% for 2024. The higher payout covers 75,000 salaried employees globally, ranging from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.entrepreneur.com\/business-news\/ex-meta-staff-says-software-engineers-make-3-common-mistakes\/494921\">engineers<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.entrepreneur.com\/business-news\/this-is-what-a-google-ai-product-manager-tells-people-who-want-her-6-figure-job\">product managers<\/a> to corporate executives.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/blockads.fivefilters.org\"> <\/a><\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/blockads.fivefilters.org\/acceptable.html\"> <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8230; \u00e2\u0080\u0091best vehicle quality targets. The <span class=\"match\">automaker<\/span> will give its employees their &#8230; a profit-sharing payment.\u00c2\u00a0 The <span class=\"match\">automaker<\/span> posted a loss of $8 &#8230; \u00e2\u0080\u0091best vehicle quality targets. The <span class=\"match\">automaker<\/span> will give its employees their &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-87694","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","wpcat-1-id"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/87694","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=87694"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/87694\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=87694"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=87694"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=87694"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}