BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany's IG Metall union lashed out on Wednesday at plans to cut thousands of jobs at Ford, saying that the restructuring would spell a slow death for the U.S. automaker's production site in Cologne.

"In our view, this would be an incremental death," IG Metall representative Kerstin Klein said of the plans' expected impact on the Cologne plant.

"We know the toolbox available in such a dispute and will not hesitate in giving the workforce the appropriate outlet for their anger," David Luedtke, a workforce representative, said in the statement from the union.

(Writing by Rachel More; Editing by Madeline Chambers)