Honda May Offer Voluntary Retirements in US

Honda Motor, confronting its first quarterly loss in 15 years, will scale back plans to make business jets, and may offer voluntary retirements in the US for the first time.

The company will produce 70 to 80 jets a year for delivery from the end of 2010, compared with an earlier plan to make 100 planes a year, CEO Takeo Fukui said.

Honda, Japan’s second-largest car maker, expects a loss of ¥243 billion ($2.6 billion) in the current quarter as vehicle demand in the US and Japan plummets.

Honda, which expects an 87% drop in net income in the year ending in March, may offer voluntary retirements or work-sharing in the US as the company cuts output. A work-share program would reduce workers’ hours and pay to avoid job cuts. The company has already cut compensation for managers in Japan by 5% and board members salaries by 10%.