Volkswagen to Double Job Cuts, Close German Plants

Volkswagen plans to double its job cuts to as many as 100,000 and may close four German factories. CEO Oliver Blume is pushing through one of Europe's biggest industrial restructurings, Manager Magazin reported.

The plans, presented at a management board meeting this week, include cutting overhead costs by €11 billion by 2030 and shuttering plants in Neckarsulm, Hanover, Zwickau and Emden, the magazine said, citing people familiar with the matter. An Audi site in Neckarsulm and a VW plant in Emden are among the targets. The CEO is also considering separating the VW brand and its components business to make the group leaner, the report added.

Volkswagen must undergo profound change, a company spokesperson said, declining to comment on the specifics.

Blume has already secured 28,000 voluntary departures as part of a target to reduce 50,000 positions by 2030. Production capacity has been trimmed from 12 million vehicles a year toward 9 million. The carmaker is grappling with U.S. tariffs and a persistent China slowdown, with competition from BYD and Stellantis adding pressure.

Worker representatives and the IG Metall union called the plans unsettling and vowed to oppose them with all their might. Labor holds half the seats on the supervisory board, and the state of Lower Saxony, which tends to side with unions, has two more seats. The magazine noted that past VW restructuring plans have often been watered down by labor opposition.

Blume will present the plan to the full supervisory board next month. The group employs about 657,000 people globally.