Audi to Slash 7,500 Jobs in Administration, Development by 2029: Report

Audi will slash up to 7,500 jobs in Germany by 2029 in the administration and development departments, in an attempt to curb costs, the carmaker said. 

The planned measures, agreed on Monday by labour representatives and management, could effectively help the company save 1 billion euros each year in the medium term, Reuters reported.

Audi said it was investing 8 billion euros in its German sites in the next four years. 

Audi has already slashed roughly 9,500 production jobs since 2019, an attempt the carmaker at the time hoped would result in the freeing up of billions of euros to fund its shift to EVs and bolster margins to 9-11%, Reuters noted. 

It has however, not done well in recent years, with its operating margin crashing to 4.5% in the first nine months of 2024 from 7% in the same period of the previous year due to weak sales in its key markets and the cost of ceasing production, opens new tab at its struggling Brussels plant. It is reporting its full-year annual results for 2024 on Tuesday.

The premium carmaker plans to make a new entry-level electric model at its Ingolstadt plant, and is considering a further model in its second German site of Neckarsulm, it said, a soothing sign for German labour representatives nervous about carmakers opting to produce EVs in cheaper countries, it reported.

A job security guarantee agreement at its German sites had been extended to the end of 2033, Audi said.

"The negotiations were tough, but always factual and solution-oriented... we had to make compromises to allow financial flexibility for additional investments," Joerg Schlagbauer, head of the works council, said in a statement, the newswire noted.