Volkswagen plans to cut up to 100,000 jobs
Volkswagen said it plans to cut up to 100,000 jobs across its global operations, one of the largest workforce reductions announced by a European industrial group in recent years. The company pointed to sharp profit declines and intensifying competition from Chinese manufacturers, which have moved faster on lower-cost electric vehicles and taken share in markets where Volkswagen long dominated.
The scale of the cuts reflects a structural squeeze rather than a cyclical dip. Legacy carmakers built around combustion-engine plants and higher-cost European labor are struggling to match the pricing of Chinese rivals while also funding the shift to electric drivetrains. Reductions of this size will be politically fraught in Germany, where Volkswagen’s workforce is heavily unionized and the state of Lower Saxony holds a stake in the company, making layoffs subject to negotiation rather than unilateral action.