Porsche is set to cut 1,900 jobs in Germany by 2029 as part of cost-cutting measures aimed at reversing declining profitability amid weak electric vehicle (EV) demand and challenging geopolitical and economic conditions. The job cuts will primarily impact workers at Porsche’s main plant in Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen and its research and development site in Weissach, targeting a 15% workforce reduction at these locations.

The company will avoid forced layoffs, opting instead for voluntary measures such as early retirement and severance packages, while also adopting a restrictive hiring approach.

Despite its relatively strong position, Porsche faces difficulties, including delays in the ramp-up of electromobility and declining sales in key markets like China and Europe. In response, the automaker is also expanding its product portfolio with more combustion engine and plug-in hybrid models, which is expected to lower its profit margin to about 14% in 2024, down from earlier projections of 15% to 17%.

The company is undergoing leadership changes, with Chief Financial Officer Lutz Meschke and Sales Chief Detlev von Platen leaving due to criticism over poor financial performance and weak share prices.

Porsche, which is majority-owned by Volkswagen Group, previously cut 1,500 fixed-term contracts in 2024, and 500 more are now ending. Meanwhile, Volkswagen and its other brands, including Audi, are considering updates to their combustion engine lineups to adapt to the slow growth in EV demand, although they maintain plans to phase out combustion engines in Europe by the early 2030s.