FORD'S European division is looking to reduce labor costs over the next few years as the brand embarks on a "comprehensive transformation strategy aimed at strengthening the Ford brand and creating a sustainably profitable business" across the continent. Though the Blue Oval brand did not confirm the number of job cuts to its European operations, Ford indicated the possibility of plant closures to the Financial Times newspaper. The majority of Ford Europe's 54,000 workers are based in the UK, Germany and Spain. Ford Motor Company CEO Jim Hackett started an $A18 billion restructuring program last year aimed at containing losses in Europe and China while boosting investment in EVs and autonomous vehicles. Ford also abandoned a goal of reaching an eight per cent profit margin by 2020.