Volkswagen plans to cut as many as 4,000 jobs from its factory in Germany by offering its older workers partial retirement, sources close to the case told Reuters.
The sources reportedly said the positions would be about the company’s six German factories as part of a retirement plan that Volkswagen previously announced. The outlet notes that the German newspaper Handelsblatt previously reported that 5,000 jobs would be cut.
Volkswagen said in a statement that it had agreed a plan with the works council to offer partial retirement benefits to those born in 1964 and early retirement to employees born between 1956 and 1960, Reuters said. This move will reportedly cost the company several hundred million euros.
Although the automaker declined to comment on the story, a source told Reuters the program could cost as much as 500 million euros ($ 598 million).
Volkswagen said it expects as many as 900 employees will take the early retirement offer, while a few thousand will go for partial retirement. According to Reuters, the six German factories of the main VW brand currently employ 120,000 people.
The car company also said it would extend its rental freeze until the end of 2021, having previously said the freeze would last until the end of the first quarter.