Around 20,000 VW workers agree to buyout amid overhaul

FRANKFURT, (Germany): Around 20,000 Volkswagen workers in Germany have so far agreed to take voluntary redundancy as part of a major overhaul aimed at cutting costs, the struggling auto titan said Tuesday.

Europe’s biggest carmaker, hit by fierce competition in key market China and a stuttering shift to electric vehicles, struck a deal with unions last year for massive job cuts in its home market.

About 20,000 workers had so far accepted redundancy offers, out of a total of 35,000 due to be shed by 2030 under the agreement, the 10-brand group said.

The jobs are being cut at the carmaker’s core Volkswagen brand, and amount to about 30 percent of its workforce in Germany.