Volkswagen to cut another 50,000 jobs in sweeping restructuring

German automotive giant Volkswagen said on Thursday that it would eliminate a further 50,000 jobs by the end of the decade, taking the total number of planned workforce reductions to 100,000.

AFP reported that the latest cuts form part of a restructuring plan agreed upon by the company’s management and trade unions as Europe’s largest carmaker seeks to reduce costs and respond to mounting economic pressure.

“It is essential to systematically align workforce levels with economic realities,” the 10-brand group said in a statement.

Volkswagen said the plan involved cutting about 50,000 additional positions, on top of a similar number of job losses previously agreed upon. Together, the reductions represent approximately 15 per cent of its global workforce and would amount to the largest restructuring undertaken in the automotive industry.

The group, whose portfolio includes Volkswagen, Audi and Porsche, has been grappling with the impact of United States tariffs, uneven demand for electric vehicles and intensifying competition from Chinese carmakers.

The restructuring has also raised uncertainty over four Volkswagen plants in Germany. The Hindu reported that the management and unions acknowledged that the long-term future of facilities in Hannover, Emden, Zwickau and Neckarsulm could not be guaranteed into the 2030s.

Any closure of the plants would mark the first time Volkswagen has shut full-scale production facilities in its home country.

The agreement represents progress in sensitive negotiations between the company and its workforce. Volkswagen’s supervisory board, which includes representatives of both shareholders and employees, unanimously approved the restructuring proposal.

“The supervisory board has unanimously approved the executive board’s future plan presented today,” Volkswagen chief executive Oliver Blume said.

“This is a strong signal for the future of the Volkswagen Group,” he added.