Oliver Blume
Photo: Marco Prosch, Porsche AG, überreicht durch Diana Sänger, Public Relations…, CC0 (Wikimedia Commons, cropped)
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- Oct 29
Volkswagen posts €5.82 billion third-quarter loss on Porsche writedown and China slump
Volkswagen's net loss for July to September reached €5.82 billion, pulled down by a €6.4 billion Porsche writedown and weak sales in China. The group's plan calls for up to 100,000 job cuts.
- Oct 28
Volkswagen opens first industrial car dismantling line at Zwickau plant
The line starts with pre-series cars that were never registered, and the project was finished in nine months, about three months ahead of the original schedule. Up to 1,000 jobs are planned in the segment over the long term.
- Oct 23
VW and IG Metall set talks for 24 November, but clash over job transfer companies
Volkswagen plans 12,000 more job cuts by 2030 and wants publicly subsidised transfer companies in talks with IG Metall, which calls the proposal a breach of promise. Strikes become possible once the peace obligation ends on 31 December.
- Oct 19
VW plans pay freeze at 2026 levels for 660,000 staff until 2030, works councils say
Works councils say management has told HR managers worldwide to hold pay at 2026 levels until 2030, a plan that Süddeutsche Zeitung estimates would cut purchasing power by about 10%. Volkswagen declined to comment, calling the reports speculation.
- Oct 13
Renault and Stellantis CEOs urge European car industry strategy and capacity sharing
At the Paris motor show, Renault CEO François Provost said the European car industry has lost a third of its jobs since 2010, while Stellantis CEO Antonio Filosa said the group will share plant capacity with Chinese partners rather than close factories.
- Oct 8
Audi activates bad weather clause to reopen talks on Neckarsulm job cuts
Chief executive Gernot Döllner announced the move at a staff meeting on Thursday, putting existing guarantees that protected more than 15,000 workers through 2033 back into negotiation.
- Oct 7
Porsche cuts 9,000 jobs and pivots back to combustion engines in turnaround plan
Porsche CEO Michael Leiters announced the Sportwagenschmiede 35 turnaround plan on Wednesday, cutting 9,000 jobs, lowering break-even volume below 200,000 vehicles, and reviving combustion models after electric vehicle sales slowed.
- Oct 1
Volkswagen's Cariad plans 1,000 job cuts and 6.1 billion euro investment reduction
Volkswagen's software unit Cariad plans to cut roughly 1,000 jobs and reduce investments by 6.1 billion euros through 2031 as it renegotiates labour agreements in Wolfsburg.
- Sep 30
Volkswagen terminates 10 labor agreements and seeks longer hours to cut German wage costs
Volkswagen has terminated ten collective bargaining agreements in Germany, including its core framework deal, as chief executive Oliver Blume pushes to extend working hours without wage compensation.
- Sep 28
Volkswagen and Gotion form joint ventures for battery plants in Spain, Slovakia and Morocco
Volkswagen and Chinese manufacturer Gotion High-Tech have agreed to establish three joint ventures across Europe and North Africa, with Gotion taking a 49% stake in the Sagunto battery plant for 1.1 billion euros.
- Sep 5
Volkswagen approves restructuring plan to cut 100,000 jobs and phase out vehicle output at four German plants
The German automaker will eliminate approximately 100,000 positions globally and end car assembly across four domestic factories by 2034, reallocating vehicle lines to Central European plants.
- Aug 23
Volkswagen agrees to 100,000 job cuts and plant reviews under 2030 restructuring plan
The supervisory board approved a turnaround plan targeting a 9% operating margin by 2030, putting four German factories under review and halving the company model range by 2035.
- Aug 23
Lower Saxony premier Olaf Lies urges EU tariffs on Chinese hybrid cars
Lower Saxony Minister-President Olaf Lies has written to European and German leaders seeking import duties on Chinese plug-in hybrids, warning of a 70% export increase and market distortion.
- Jul 27
Audi slashes 2026 revenue forecast by 5 billion euros as China profit collapses and Neckarsulm plant hangs in balance
The Volkswagen luxury group lowered its expected revenue to 58-63 billion euros, down from 63-68 billion, and posted a 21% drop in Q2 net profit. China contributed only 73 million euros in the first half, compared with nearly four times that a year earlier.
- Jul 24
Volkswagen profit plunges 30.7% as China sales collapse and restructuring costs bite
The German automaker reported net profit of €3.1 billion for the first half of 2026, down from €4.5 billion a year earlier, while Spanish subsidiary Seat saw its operating profit triple to €122 million.
- Jul 24
Volkswagen profit drops 32.9% in Q2 as China sales collapse; group cuts full-year revenue forecast and plans up to 50,000 more job cuts
Net income fell to €1.54 billion in the second quarter, down from €2.29 billion a year earlier, while deliveries in China tumbled more than a third to 424,300 vehicles.
- Jun 26
Volkswagen plans 100,000 job cuts and closure of four German plants in deepest overhaul in its 89-year history
Europe's largest carmaker weighs a radical restructuring that would double earlier cut targets, break a union pact, and shrink production capacity to 9 million vehicles a year.
- Jun 25
Volkswagen sells majority of engine builder Everllence to Bain Capital for €7.4 billion
The German automaker is handing over 51 percent of its large-engine subsidiary to the US investor, keeping 49 percent, while securing German jobs until 2030.
