Porsche employees are already preparing for a much leaner company over the coming years. A reported proposal from parent company Volkswagen suggests the cuts could potentially go much deeper.
Porsche has previously agreed to eliminate around 9,000 positions by 2035 through measures negotiated between management and labor representatives. Now, another 4,100 positions have reportedly appeared in Volkswagen’s broader restructuring calculations.
Adding those figures together would put roughly 13,100 jobs in the firing line. For perspective, Porsche reported 41,780 employees at the end of 2025, meaning a reduction of that magnitude would equal nearly one-third of that workforce.
The additional cuts aren’t currently Porsche policy, however. Handelsblatt first reported the proposal, with Reuters subsequently confirming details of the report, while Porsche CEO Michael Leiters has since told employees that the sports-car maker isn’t planning cuts beyond those already agreed.
Volkswagen Reportedly Identified Another 4,100 Jobs
According to Handelsblatt, documents connected with Volkswagen’s restructuring efforts identified around 4,100 additional Porsche positions as potentially expendable. The proposed reduction is intended to address an overhead shortfall of approximately €700 million ($804 million).
Those positions would come on top of existing agreements. Porsche management and labor representatives agreed in July to approximately 5,000 additional reductions after 4,000 positions had already been targeted, bringing the existing total to around 9,000.
There’s an important distinction between Volkswagen’s proposal and what Porsche can actually implement. Reuters reports that Volkswagen can recommend measures to its subsidiary but cannot simply mandate those additional cuts.
Porsche Says Those Extra Cuts Aren’t Planned
Leiters addressed the report in an internal memo seen by Reuters on September 21. He told employees that Porsche’s existing restructuring program had been approved by its own supervisory board and that no further reductions beyond the agreed measures are currently planned.
Even without the additional proposal, Porsche is facing substantial contraction. Its workforce stood at 41,780 at the end of 2025, down from 42,615 a year earlier.
Porsche Is Under Serious Financial Pressure
The debate comes as Volkswagen deals with significant financial pressure tied partly to Porsche. Volkswagen recently lowered its expected 2026 profit margin to no higher than 1%, down from its previous forecast of between 4% and 5.5%.
Porsche’s difficulties include weakening demand in China and costly changes to its electric-vehicle strategy. Its return on sales fell to 1.1% in 2025, while deliveries declined to 279,449 vehicles from 310,718 the previous year.
For Porsche’s workforce, the immediate plan remains the roughly 9,000 previously agreed reductions rather than 13,100. Volkswagen’s reported proposal nevertheless shows just how aggressively its parent company is examining costs as one of Germany’s most famous sports-car manufacturers works through a difficult turnaround.