Volvo Plans A Few Thousand Layoffs As Part of Cost-Cutting Effort
Volvo’s Chinese ownership and heavy overseas production footprint have put it in a uniquely challenging position in the U.S. market, but the automaker is facing significant hurdles in other countries. Yesterday, the company announced up to 3,000 layoffs as it looks to turn the situation around.
The cuts will help Volvo save around $1.89 billion and will impact 3,000 jobs in the company’s home country of Sweden, or about 15 percent of its office-based workforce. Volvo CEO Hakan Samuelsson said, “The automotive industry is in the middle of a challenging period. To address this, we must improve our cash flow generation and structurally lower our costs. At the same time, we will continue to ensure the development of the talent we need for our ambitious future.”
President Trump cooled talk about 50 percent tariffs on EU imports after talking with EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. Cars coming from the old world face a 25 percent tariff, plus tariffs on imported metals.
Volvo withdrew its financial projections and said it would look to cut investments in other parts of its operations globally, citing tariffs as a cause. The automaker also delayed plans to go all-electric, saying it needed to remain “pragmatic and flexible” as the industry adapts to the new reality.
[Images: Volvo]
Become a TTAC insider. Get the latest news, features, TTAC takes, and everything else that gets to the truth about cars first by subscribing to our newsletter.
Chris grew up in, under, and around cars, but took the long way around to becoming an automotive writer. After a career in technology consulting and a trip through business school, Chris began writing about the automotive industry as a way to reconnect with his passion and get behind the wheel of a new car every week. He focuses on taking complex industry stories and making them digestible by any reader. Just don’t expect him to stay away from high-mileage Porsches.
More by Chris Teague
Comments
Join the conversation
Extrapolated that works out to a large total number of overhead employees in a high employment cost country.
"President Trump cooled talk about 50 percent tariffs on EU imports after talking with EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. Cars coming from the old world face a 25 percent tariff, plus tariffs on imported metals."
Oh thank goodness, it's ONLY 25%! What a deal!