Ford Credit, echoing a move by parent Ford Motor Co., is launching a widespread cost-cutting effort and reorganization that is expected to include involuntary layoffs, company officials said, according to the Detroit News.

The finance unit is aiming to reduce its personnel costs by more than 15 percent by the end of 2004, according to one Ford official familiar with the plans. Ford Credit chairman and CEO Greg Smith told employees in an e-mail July 29 that the automaker's finance arm "will be undergoing a significant restructuring effort" in response to competitive market conditions.

Ford Credit expects to reap some savings through attrition, reduced hiring, limited overtime and restricted travel… "Involuntary layoffs will be the last resort," Ford spokeswoman Marcy Evans said, the News reported.

Ford Credit's restructuring is separate from the cost-cutting actions at its parent company, but has similar objectives, Evans said. "Ford Credit is not exempt from having to go through the same processes," she said, according to the News.