WOLFSBURG, GERMANY / RankWire.AI / – Volkswagen is reviewing up to 50,000 additional job reductions across its global operations. The assessment places the maximum combined figure at 100,000, including cuts already agreed in Germany. Chief Executive Oliver Blume informed employees that current calculations point to another 50,000 positions across the group. Volkswagen has not approved a second round or released a regional breakdown. The company also has not set a final timetable for the additional reductions.
The existing German program covers about 50,000 jobs at Volkswagen, Audi, Porsche and software subsidiary CARIAD by 2030. Volkswagen AG accounts for 35,000 of those positions. Binding agreements already cover more than 28,000 departures through the end of the decade. The group has relied on voluntary exits, partial retirement and other negotiated measures. Its current agreements spread the reductions across several years, brands and business units.
Volkswagen employed 662,942 people worldwide at the end of 2025, including workers at Chinese joint ventures. Germany accounted for 284,032 employees, while 378,910 worked elsewhere. The total workforce stood 2.4% below the 2024 level. Active employees numbered 628,893, with others in partial retirement or vocational training. Volkswagen has not identified which countries, plants, brands or job categories would carry the extra reductions under review.
Existing agreements cover half of potential cuts
The workforce review runs alongside a broader plan presented to the supervisory board on July 9. The executive board outlined 12 initiatives and a target structure for 2030. Volkswagen plans to streamline its model lineup by up to 50% and reduce equipment options by up to 75%. The group also set a cross-brand production capacity target of about 9 million vehicles annually. Before the pandemic, Volkswagen had invested in capacity for about 12 million vehicles and has since removed 2 million.
The plan also covers technology platforms, software, factory efficiency, regional operations, investments and management structures. Volkswagen said digital tools, artificial intelligence and shared services will support productivity in development and administrative functions. The public presentation did not attach specific job numbers to each initiative. It also omitted a final location list and schedule for the extra reductions. Chief Financial Officer Arno Antlitz said current programs no longer provide enough cost savings.
Global deliveries decline during first half
Prior workforce and bargaining measures generated about 1 billion euros in sustainable cost effects during 2025. Volkswagen targets more than 6 billion euros in annual net savings by 2030, including agreed reductions in production capacity. Factory costs at its German sites fell by more than 20% on average in 2025. Those figures relate to measures already underway, not a fully approved second global job-cut program. IG Metall has opposed compulsory layoffs and factory closures.
Volkswagen delivered 4.13 million vehicles worldwide during the first half of 2026, down 6% from a year earlier. Deliveries fell 26% in China and 3.1% in North America. Western Europe recorded 3% growth, while South America increased 8%. Battery electric vehicle deliveries reached 438,500, also down 6%, although European electric deliveries grew 8%. Existing agreements cover about 50,000 cuts, while Volkswagen continues reviewing another 50,000 positions without a final implementation plan.