#manufacturing · How AI Is Reshaping Work

On November 3 Schaeffler said it will cut a net 3,460 positions at 16 European sites, about 2,660 in Germany, and close five plants. It targets about EUR 300M in annual savings by 2030 against about EUR 480M in one-off costs. AI is not named.

On October 23, Volvo Cars reported a Q3 operating loss of SEK 5.6B and said about 2,500 roles will go worldwide, 2,000 of them in Sweden, alongside SEK 5B more in indirect and variable cost savings. The release does not mention AI.

On October 22, Dow's CEO told analysts about 70% of the roughly 4,500 role reductions announced in January are done, with the phase substantially complete by year-end. The upsized 2026 target for Transform to Outperform is $700M.

On October 12 Schaeffler said 3,715 of the 4,700 positions in its 2024 earnings program were gone by September 30, the rest are contractually covered, and completion moves from 2029 to 2028. The release mentions neither AI nor automation.

Porsche's October 7 strategy release plans 9,000 job cuts, about 25% of the direct and indirect workforce, with management positions down 40% and break-even below 200,000 cars a year. The release does not mention AI or automation.

Goodyear told the SEC on October 1 that it will close its chemical plants in Niagara Falls, NY and Bayport, TX: about 85 job reductions, $55M to $75M in pre-tax charges, $15M to $20M a year in savings from 2027. The filing does not mention AI.

On September 30 Greggs proposed closing four manufacturing sites with about 740 jobs at risk, at a cost of around £60m and savings of about £20m across 2028 and 2029. The same statement reported sales up 7.7% in the quarter to September 26. No source names AI or automation as a reason.

On September 28 Bosch told its Nuremberg workforce that about 900 of the plant's 1,800 jobs will go by 2029. The company cites the auto industry's transformation and price pressure from Chinese rivals, and never names AI.

On September 28 Stelco said it will idle Hamilton Works cold-rolling and coating indefinitely, with layoffs from October 9. The union counts 350 jobs; company-side coverage runs up to 500. The stated cause is U.S. tariffs, and no AI is cited.

Volkswagen slashed its full-year profit guidance on September 21 and booked a nearly €6B Porsche writedown, sending both stocks lower. The same day, Germany's IG Metall union staged protests at more than 280 sites, with the works council chief saying 「the battle over how to share the burden has already begun.」

JLR named 4,000 roles on September 7, about 10% of its global headcount, to be taken out over two years through voluntary redundancy. The roles it flagged as at risk are management. Volkswagen booked another 50,000 four days earlier.

Campbell's reported fiscal Q4 on September 3 and confirmed its salaried workforce is already down about 13%. Full-year sales fell 5%, the dividend was cut 36%, two snack plants closed. Nobody said the letters 「AI」 once.