German luxury car maker Audi, owned by embattled Volkswagen Group, will cut up to 7,500 jobs in Germany by the end of 2029, the company and the works council announced on Monday, following extensive negotiations.rn
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As part of the agreement, Audi is extending the job protection plan until the end of 2033, reducing labor costs and positioning its German sites to be robust and flexible for the transition to electric mobility.
The agreement applies with immediate effect and provides the basis for further developments.
The planned reduction in jobs goes hand in hand with a clear focus in the portfolio and a reduction of bureaucracy.
In recent months, the company has already significantly reduced the number of guidelines and committees.
With the introduction of the matrix organization principle, Audi is flattening the management structure to three levels, assigning clear decision-making responsibilities and thus accelerating development and innovation processes. In addition, the company is examining where digitalization can help reduce the workload in indirect areas.
In addition, the company plans to reduce personnel costs by adjusting payments above the collective wage agreement and variable payments for pay-scale employees.
Jörg Schlagbauer, Chairman of the General Works Council says: “Through a temporary reduction and a new structure of the profit share program, the Audi workforce is giving a major contribution to making the four rings weatherproof and future-proof again. Overall, the Audi workforce is investing many, many millions of euros in its own future over coming years.”
The company will continue to train young people in the future and is adjusting the number of apprenticeships and dual study places to company requirements.
To ensure the future readiness of the German sites, Audi is confirming its strategic production capacities and extending the job protection plan until December 31, 2033.
Audi is planning to invest around eight billion euros at its home locations through 2029. Neckarsulm and Ingolstadt are heading into the future with sharpened profiles: in Ingolstadt, another electric model in the entry-level segment will be produced. In addition, the upcoming Audi Q3 will be produced jointly with the Hungarian plant in Győr.
With the production of all-electric cars and a combustion-engine model, the site is robustly and flexibly positioned for the transition to electric mobility.
At the Neckarsulm site, the local ecosystem will be used to strengthen Audi's digitalization expertise in the field of artificial intelligence.
In addition, the electronic architecture of combustion-engine vehicles will be developed further, significantly increasing their competitiveness.
Furthermore, the possibility of producing an additional model in Neckarsulm in the future is being examined. To secure this, Audi is setting up a "future fund" totaling 250 million euros.
With the measures set out in the agreement for the future, the company plans to achieve medium-term savings of more than one billion euros annually. ■
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