The Ford motor company has confirmed that research positions will not be affected by job cuts across its UK and European operations.
On 3 February, the firm, which employs around 10,000 salaried staff in Europe, announced a voluntary redundancy scheme as part of plans to save $200 million (£138m) a year.
Hundreds of jobs are expected to go in Germany and in the UK, where most of Ford’s European workforce is located.