BMW Cuts 5,600 Jobs

Frank Williams
by Frank Williams

While not making draconian cuts like The Big 2.8, BMW is reducing their work force to lower their overheads. The Detroit Free Press reports that the Bavarian automaker is cutting an additional 5.6k jobs this year. That's in addition to the 2.5k positions they've already eliminated. By the time they're through showing workers the door, Bimmer will have trimmed 7.5 percent of their worldwide workforce. The move comes in response to Chief Executive Norbert Reithofer's commitment to increase the company's "rate of return" ( which made the exec queasy and left the money men a lot less than impressed). Ernst Baumann, BMW's head of personnel, said the job reductions will end-up costing in the "three-digit million" euro range for severance pay, benefits and other expenses. He also warned that if the dollar continues to fall, more employees would get the old heave-ho.

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  • NICKNICK NICKNICK on Feb 28, 2008

    # Redbarchetta : February 28th, 2008 at 11:13 am You would think their cars would be more reliable too with so much robot assembly. robot assembly won't fix software bugs, electrical glitches, design flaws, or wear parts.

  • Redbarchetta Redbarchetta on Feb 28, 2008
    robot assembly won’t fix software bugs, electrical glitches, design flaws, or wear parts. I realise its not going to fix those problems but it should make mechanical flaws and some design flaws easier to spot and then once addressed and then fixed it should produce a consistently reliable product, at least in theory. I keep forgetting about the huge number of electrical gremlins manf. are putting into their cars these days.
  • Brendan Brendan on Feb 28, 2008

    Fix your roof when the sun is shining. The falling dollar is really going to screw them. Their SC plant is their only safety net.

  • Raskolnikov Raskolnikov on Feb 28, 2008

    Good for those workers that Starbucks and WalMart are hiring in Germany. After all, who needs manufacturing jobs? America doesn't.....................right???????

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