This upcoming drastic workforce shrinkage comes after an existing restructuring program at Porsche was deemed insufficient.
Just in case anyone needs a clearer sign that the German auto industry is currently in a poor state, here’s Porsche with some recently unveiled plans for a significant workforce reduction.
The Stuggart stallion marque has recently announced that it is set to cut 1,900 jobs across its operation within the next four years. And what is perhaps more frightening than that already substantial workforce shrinkage is that this plan actually comes after an existing restructuring programme that was since determined to be insufficiently effective…
Porsche’s planned workforce reduction strategy is set to primarily focus on its main facilities in southwestern Germany, specifically the Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen and Weissach locations, where the company aims to reduce staffing levels by 15% by 2029. This new initiative follows an earlier restructuring effort that began in 2024, which involved not renewing contracts for 2,000 fixed-term employees.
Now despite the substantial workforce reduction, Porsche has confirmed that no forced redundancies will take place, as protected by a location safeguarding agreement valid until 2030. Instead, the company plans to achieve its workforce reduction goals through various measures, including natural attrition, demographic changes, and implementing restrictive hiring policies for new positions.
This strategic workforce reduction does represents a significant shift for Porsche, who are traditionally known for its stable employment practices and premium market position. The move also currently reflects broader industry trends, with some legacy automakers struggling to keep up in this electrified (and China-dominated) era.
And one such automaker that is currently in a bigger pickle than Porsche is incidentally its parent company, Volkswagen. The German giant had previously planned to shut at least three factories in Germany and layoff tens of thousands of staff in its ongoing business restructuring efforts late last year, but was forced to reverse course after negotiations with its workers.
Deliveries by Porsche worldwide in 2024 fell by more than 9,500 units last year, with much of this sales decline attributed to a significant volume drop in China. The German sports car manufacturer delivered 56,887 vehicles in the world’s largest automotive market throughout last year, down 28% from 79,283 units in the year prior.
Looking forward, Porsche has floated the idea to reintroduce some ICE back into its planned electric-only models. This could therefore see the current EV-only Macan gain a tailpipe in the near future, not to mention the previously proposed electric Cayman replacement as well.
In response to the challenging market conditions, Porsche is set to restructure their dealership network in China. The automaker has also said to place a renewed emphasis on its highly-lucrative Porsche Sonderwunsch (special request) and Porsche Exclusive Manufaktur programmes, in a bid to further shore up short to medium term profitability.
