White-collar workers at Ford are today set to be balloted on strike action over pay and conditions.

The professional workers, who include engineers, IT and admin staff, are demanding an equivalent settlement to the deal offered to manual workers last year.

The manual workers' three-year deal was worth 15 per cent, and included a reduction in the working week, compared to the 11 per cent offered to professionals.

The result of the ballot will be announced on Thursday, February 3. A vote in favour of a strike could bring Ford to a standstill.

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