\n July 29, 2026 9:02 AM, EDT<\/p>\n
Workers adjust the chassis of an automobile on the assembly line in the BMW Group factory in Leipzig, Germany. (Krisztian Bocsi\/Bloomberg)<\/p>\n
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\nBMW reached a deal with worker representatives to offer buyouts in Germany as part of plans to cut about 8,000 jobs globally.The reductions represent roughly 5% of BMW\u2019s workforce and reflect pressure from falling China sales, U.S. tariffs and high European production costs.BMW executives are expected to announce the program Wednesday, with departures beginning in October and continuing through 2027, people familiar said. <\/p>\n
BMW AG reached a deal with workers to offer buyouts across Germany in an effort to cut about 8,000 jobs globally as sales plunge in China.<\/p>\n
The manufacturer expects the German departures to account for most of the targeted reductions, which represent around 5% of BMW\u2019s total workforce, according to people familiar with the matter. It\u2019s the latest in a series of restructuring moves by the country\u2019s embattled auto industry.\n \t \t\t<\/p>\n
The offer will go out to staff in research, development, planning and other corporate functions, with factory floor workers not eligible, said the people, who asked not to be identified as the plans aren\u2019t public. BMW also is looking to streamline its management ranks in the coming months as part of the broader cuts, they said.<\/p>\n
BMW and its German peers are slashing expenses in response to challenges including slumping sales in China, U.S. tariffs<\/a> and high production costs in Europe. Volkswagen AG is pushing to cut<\/a> tens of thousands of workers and reduce capacity to stave off fast-moving rivals led by BYD Co. Its Porsche AG unit announced a deal<\/a> with labor officials this week to eliminate 5,000 jobs by 2035.\n \t\t<\/p>\n BMW CEO Milan Nedeljkovic and works council leaders are set to announce the voluntary reduction program during a staff-wide meeting in Germany on July 29, the people added. The program begins in October and will run through 2027, they said.<\/p>\n A spokesman for BMW confirmed that the company has reached a deal with the works council on a restructuring program in Germany, declining to further comment.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n BMW shares rose as much as 1.9% in Frankfurt. The stock is still down more than a third this year.<\/p>\n Nedeljkovic is looking to cut costs after a\u00a0major profit warning\u00a0last month. The manufacturer expects the voluntary redundancy program to boost profitability in 2028, the people said.<\/p>\n The CEO, who took over in May, is responding to a steep decline in demand in China, BMW\u2019s largest single market. The combination of mounting competition from local manufacturers led by BYD Co. \u2014 especially on electric vehicles \u2014 and a property crisis is weighing on all carmakers there. Those same rivals are now expanding in Europe.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Chinese are also increasing their market share here,\u201d said\u00a0Stefan Bratzel, director of the Center of Automotive Management in Bergisch Gladbach, Germany. \u201cThe clear directive for BMW and its peers is to become leaner, more efficient and faster.\u201d<\/p>\n BMW is also facing pressure from the fallout of the war in the Middle East and U.S. tariffs. The company recently decided to pull out of this year\u2019s Paris car show as it rethinks its priorities. Last month, BMW said it will intensify its existing cost reduction plans for this year.<\/p>\n Cutting jobs in the German auto sector is a costly process with worker guarantees usually precluding firings, so companies need to offer generous packages to reduce headcount.<\/p>\n BMW employed 87,436 people in Germany at the end of last year, more than half of its total global headcount. Its workforce in the country was already down 2.3% from the prior year,\u00a0according\u00a0to the company\u2019s 2025 annual report.\u00a0<\/p>\n With the voluntary program, BMW is \u201cresponding to the collapsing market in China while simultaneously working to strengthen the competitiveness of its German sites,\u201d said Horst Ott, an IG Metall official in Bavaria and a BMW supervisory board member. He added that the carmaker\u2019s collective bargaining agreements remain in place.<\/p>\n
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