The German luxury carmaker BMW said Wednesday that a restructuring plan aimed at boosting profitability would see the overall elimination of 8,100 jobs world-wide. Part-time workers would be hit hardest, with 5,000 fewer posts, half of which had already been cut last year, a BMW spokesman told AFP.
The other half would be let go by the end of 2008, he said. More than 3,000 full-time jobs would also disappear, including 2,500 in Germany and 600 in foreign distribution networks on the basis of voluntary departures or non-replacement of workers who retired, BMW board member Ernst Baumann said in a statement.
BMW announced in late December a broad restructuring of its workforce as part of a plan to increase the profit on its cars, which have sold well but earned less for the group than rival Daimler makes with its Mercedes brand. "We are working on improving our margins" to maintain BMW in a competitive position, Baumann said.
In September, BMW boss Norbert Reithofer unveiled a five-year plan dubbed "Number One" that was aimed at achieving a profit margin of between eight to 10 percent by 2012.