Volkswagen (VW) management has approved the major restructuring plan it had previously warned of. The plan means 50,000 jobs will be lost by 2030, and four German factories will be threatened in the years after that, the DPA news agency reports.
The cuts are in addition to the 50,000 jobs announced in March and were expected after both representatives of the carmaker and the union expressed concern during the summer.
Much of Thursday's announcement had already been announced, including the halving of the number of models. German media had also previously reported that the factories that could close after 2031 are those in Hanover, Zwickau and Emden, as well as the Audi factory in Neckarsulm.
"It is necessary to systematically adapt the workforce to economic reality," the company wrote in a statement.
"The future plan creates the conditions for making the Volkswagen Group and its brands more efficient, competitive and future-oriented," it continues.
The decision was unanimous and necessary, according to CEO Oliver Blume.
"This is a strong signal for the future of the Volkswagen Group," he says in a statement in which, according to public service broadcaster ARD, he also promises "a three-digit billion euro sum" in investments in the coming years.
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