Volkswagen to shed 30,000 jobs

Published 9:55 am Friday, November 18, 2016

FRANKFURT, Germany  — Volkswagen announced plans Friday to cut 30,000 jobs in a wide-ranging restructuring of its namesake brand as it tries to recover from a scandal over cars rigged to cheat on diesel emissions tests.

The German company said the job cuts, which account to around 5 percent of its global workforce, are part of a long-term plan to improve profitability and shift resources and investment to electric-powered vehicles and digital services.

At a news conference at Volkswagen’s headquarters in Wolfsburg, company officials said 23,000 of the job cuts will be in Germany and that the measures will save some 3.7 billion euros ($4 billion) a year from 2020. Volkswagen employs around 120,000 people at its namesake brand in Germany.

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The company also said it would be hiring for some 9,000 new positions related to new technology, and that some of those jobs could go to current employees.

CEO Matthias Mueller said it was “the biggest reform package in the history of our core brand.” In addition to Volkswagen, the company also makes cars under other brands including Porsche, Audi, SEAT, Skoda and Lamborghini.