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Volkswagen confirms €3.5bn restructuring plan

Volkswagen is to invest €3.5bn in e-mobility and digital services as it looks to transform the brand by 2020.

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VW will cut 30,000 jobs in a reorganisation intended to focus on e-mobility

In the wake of the diesel saga, the carmaker has said it will cut 30,000 jobs, including 23,000 in Germany, by 2020 to save €3.7bn per year.

The carmaker said compulsory redundancies would be avoided and the reduction in its workforce would be achieved through natural attrition. The negotiations have been agreed by the General Works Council of Volkswagen.

Announced as the carmaker reveals the new e-Golf, the programme is intended to “lay the foundation for the transformation of Volkswagen from a pure automaker into a successful mobility service provider in the age of digitalisation and increasing e-mobility. The main focus is on reorientation across the entire value stream.”

General Works Council Chairman Bernd Osterloh added: “The most important news is that the workplaces of our permanent workforce will be safeguarded. We have agreed that compulsory redundancies are to be excluded up to the end of 2025. In view of what is happening at other companies, this is a considerable success in troubled times.”

He concluded: “With the pact for the future, we will be entering the field of next-generation e-mobility. The new cars based on the Modular Electric Drive Kit and electric components from our plants will make our German locations pioneers of electrification within the Volkswagen Group. The Works Council has ensured that these future-orientated vehicles will be made in Germany and not in other countries. Of course, the pact for the future has positive and negative aspects. However, it represents an acceptable compromise for both parties, reached after a long struggle.”

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Natalie Middleton

Natalie has worked as a fleet journalist for over 20 years, previously as assistant editor on the former Company Car magazine before joining Fleet World in 2006. Prior to this, she worked on a range of B2B titles, including Insurance Age and Insurance Day.