Volkswagen CEO Considers Factory Closures and Up To 1 Lakh Global Job Cuts: Report

Volkswagen Group Chief Executive Officer Oliver Blume is reportedly planning a massive structural reorganisation that could result in slashing up to 100,000 positions from the automotive giant's global workforce over the coming years. According to Manager Magazin, the sweeping restructuring blueprint also targets the complete closure of four under-utilised production facilities located across Germany.

The report indicates that CEO Oliver Blume and Volkswagen Group Chief Financial Officer Arno Antlitz are aiming to fundamentally transform the corporate architecture of the world’s second-largest automaker. Under the proposed strategy, the company's core namesake VW passenger car brand alongside its extensive parts-manufacturing operations would be spun off from the primary group structure and re-incorporated as entirely distinct legal entities.

Concurrently, the executive board plans to implement a strict capital discipline program, reducing the group's cumulative five-year investment pipeline by approximately 15% down to a tightened threshold of just over €130 billion. Over the medium term, the manufacturer intends to shutter its vehicle production plants in Hanover, Zwickau, and Emden, alongside an Audi manufacturing facility located in Neckarsulm.

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Factory operations at these German industrial sites are projected to be systematically wound down and permanently discontinued once the lifecycles of the specific models currently assembled there are completely phased out.

Given that the group's global workforce stands at roughly 667,000 employees, the proposed cuts would impact nearly 15% of its total staff. The aggressive proposals have already drawn sharp opposition from the company's works council and Germany's powerful IG Metall trade union, with both bodies issuing a joint statement vowing to deploy every resource at their disposal to block the factory closures and layoffs.