Sustainable production

How many jobs will be lost following the changeover to e-mobility in Germany?

Electric vehicles can be manufactured with about 30% less labour than combustion engine cars – especially when they are built using a platform solution like the MEB. More than 1,000 parts are required for an internal combustion engine. An electric motor only has around 200 component parts. As a result, fewer employees are needed in production. Germany's IG Metall union fears that digitalization and e-mobility could eliminate up to 150,000 jobs in automotive industry production. In its study "Electromobility 2035", the Institute for Employment Research (IAB) also predicts a loss of jobs. On the other hand, expansion of the infrastructure will create additional jobs over the next five to six years, for example, in the construction and energy supply industries.

Volkswagen will also reduce jobs in a socially responsible way within the framework of a future pact agreed with the works council. At the same time, we are creating 9,000 new jobs in future-oriented fields like software development. All in all, we have earmarked around €34 billion for investments in e-mobility by 2022. €1.2 billion will be invested in the Zwickau plant to change over the factory by mid-2020 and prepare it for electric vehicle production. All of the approx. 7,700 employees will receive further training in courses that last anywhere from a few hours to 24 months. Some 13,000 training days will be completed before the end of 2019.