Thread regarding Ford layoffs

Funny - the Via complaints look like Ford NESC complaints.

At least that will be consistent for those that don't like change!

Check out the reviews on Via Benefits. This looks like a poorly run company with horrible customer service. https://via-benefits.pissedconsumer.com/complaints/RT-P.html

This is what Ford thinks of its retirees....disgusting.

@4jbw+1cYL4UeE. If by free government subsidies you mean Medicare then I believe Ford employees have been going on Medicare at age 65 for many years.

My Dad gets to keep his health plan until death but has to pay 25% of the premiums. This was a big perk offered by his employer. It is pretty rare.

Stuff like this is why I have already made up my mind not to ever again consider a voluntary settlement. I thought briefly about the one in 2018 (I did not think I qualified, but ( could have asked for an exception, as it turns out some people did just that and were accepted, plus they provided 18 month's pay at that time), and was not part of this round of VSSP in VESC. It truly is getting ridiculous now.

I get one poster's point about taking advantage of "free" government subsidies, which by the way to the person that wrote that are never free.....we are all paying for them. However, it does not make for goodwill for a company to appear to nickel and dime people who gave the best years of their lives to the company, when the other half of the company (blue collar) do not share in the same pay, which in theory could take advantage of the same "free government" benefits. Sends a really bad message, and will not encourage many of the newer hires to stay long enough to retire.

Bingo @4igk. Farley already told freep that the majority of salaried jobs will be moving to Ford of India. It is the Ford way to use the freep to pre-communicate to its workforce.
Oh but in other news Farley wants to bring back lots of mining jobs to the US, except not near his cottage.

By implementing this change, how do they expect those retirement eligible to sign up for future voluntary programs?? As they reduce the subsidy coupled with higher premiums, more retirement eligible employees will elect to stay longer and longer until they get as close to 65 as possible.

Is it one more antic to offer a voluntary, knowing they'll come up short so they can go to an involuntary? It just seems to me they're foaming at the mouth to do another purge. A, B, C is back and in full swing, folks.

@1byl+1cYL4UeE I am guessing you haven’t actually tried using NESC to get actual answers? Perhaps people have tried the avenues you suggest and found them lacking?

Real world experience 28 hours on the phone with NESC over the course of 3 days, with no resolution. After day one NESC referred to corporate HR who then referred back to NESC. It seems NESC is off-shored to India and training and knowledge level is lacking.

It is like both HR and NESC have canned flowery scripts they keep repeating no matter what the question is. The goal seems to be to get people so frustrated that they just give up.

@2kpy+1cYL4UeE
We will see November 1st. Via is in the business for profits and the plans will be numerous and stratified. To me this means those with chronic conditions will certainly pay more. Those who are healthy will be rewarded if they take on more risk. Finally there will likely be the low quality, high profit plans that won't actively be recommended.

@2wis+1cYL4UeE - You may also be right, pricing isn't released by Via Ben until a carefully crafted message and information packets have been sent. If you watch the videos on retiree site it says something like " purpose of HRA changes are being made to make healthcare more affordable..." . So we have that to interpret.

It is likely that Via benefits will provide you the most expensive health care in your entire life. Medicare will be a lot cheaper so please do what you can to stay healthy until you turn 65.

Avoid processed food and work to stay physically active even when the weather is bad. I am eating more nuts, berries, fish, sweet potatoes, brown rice, oatmeal.

God bless us all

Well the fact they are moving more work both salaried and hourly south of the border start to paint a sad picture. Then you start to see things like this. Do I feel screwed the answer is yes. I guess I will offset some of that cost with my next vehicle purchase! Loyalty is a two way street Billy boy. I guess spending $3/4bn on a train station and no accountability is ok as long as your name is on the side of the building. Second you put a Ford family member on the board at Rivian and her background was selling jeans at CAP to 19yr old's.. Yeah I feel real confident with that decision. What's next Ford family going to buy the old Packard plant?

I like what I’m hearing about the options on this marketplace. However, the loss of the Vision Plan is a real blow. I know I can purchase one on my own through the marketplace, but still a lousy move on Ford’s part. Also, you have to know that the intent is to gradually lower the amount of money that they company is giving us to spend on the marketplace. All the while premiums and deductibles continue to rise…….

The plans I was looking at has lower deductible’s and is not an HMO. Essentially the same carrier I have but with a lower deductible / And lower monthly premiums.
As always *** your results may vary.

@1ogg+1cYL4UeE I also studied the choices from the healthcare.gov and called Via Benefits. I am surprised to hear that your situation is neutral to 20% less!!!! For me, with no dependents, my premiums , based on 2021 prices, will nearly double and that does not include dental. I now pay $215 a month for a PPO Blue Cross Plan with a $3600 deductible. The same plan on HealthCare.gov cost $910 a month(2021 prices). Minus Fords contribution of $500, leaves me with a $410 monthly premium. If your premiums calculate lower on the HealthCare.gove site, you must be getting a different plan that covers less, it probably has a huge deductible, or is an HMO with lots of co-pays that your not including.

@1ogg+1cYL4UeE I hope you are right. They said no choices until Nov. so I haven't called yet.

Why do you people consult a blog site to make such critical, life effecting decisions regarding your retirement and medical benefits?

If you really are Ford employees, not troll's, you can call People Soft or NESC to get correct answers to these questions. We get internal emails from these organizations almost on a weekly basis.

We also get weekly emails on the Retirement Checklist from HR with all the phone numbers and Ford website to answer these types of questions.

I have been studying the retiree change, analyzing healthcare.gov info, and talking to Via Benefits. So far I am not finding the big 'take away' that people are claiming. Not that I don't think FMC is trying to save money somehow. The estimated impact to me and my specific situation (# of dependents and income) ranges from neutral to 20% less costly to me from what I can tell. It looks like the primary driver, IMO, that this is being done is to allow more retirees to access Affordable Care Act government subsidies and health insurance premium tax credits if they are eligible, which will cost FMC less. Basically using government subsidies since they are legal and available.

Lump sum or pension, now Ford is going to charge us BIGTIME for medical until you can go on Medicare. They continue to mess with retirees to save a dime. Look what they have become--pitiful.

No, Taking the lump sum does not remove your health insurance benefits. I took the lump sum. Benefits are not affected by this option, it just replaces the monthly pension, not the health benefits.

If you took the lump sum does that mean you forfeit retiree health care coverage?

If you are eligible, take the lump sum go to a financial planner. I sleep better at night knowing I am not counting on Ford for the pension.

Reinstate dividend.