Volkswagen's truck and bus making subsidiary MAN announced job cuts Thursday as part of plans to shift production to lower-cost Poland in the latest blow to Germany's embattled automotive sector.
About 2,300 jobs -- or roughly 20 percent of its German workforce -- would go in the country by 2030, the company said.
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There would be no compulsory redundancies as part of the cuts, it added, opting instead for voluntary measures such as early retirement.
Sluggish economic growth in Germany and Europe has held back demand for heavy vehicles, prompting German truck makers to try and cut costs.
Competitor Daimler Truck said in July it would cut 5,000 jobs by 2030 as part of plans to reduce annual European costs by 1 billion euros.
"MAN must also adapt to the continuing weakness of the truck market in Germany and further improve its cost position," the firm said in a statement.
"The company is particularly burdened by high electricity and labour costs, as well as increasing pressure from Asian competitors," it added.
Karina Schnur, head of MAN's works council, labelled the plans "a slap in the face" for employees.
"I am appalled at the company's behaviour," she said. "Management was at no point ready to seriously discuss alternatives to the relocation plans."
Sibylle Wankel, head of the IG Metall union's Munich branch, told reporters on a call that the union had proposed measures to try and narrow the cost gap with Poland.
"We proposed working an extra two hours a week without increasing pay," she said.
"The difference in costs can be dealt with, not entirely but to a substantial degree."
Germany's wider automotive industry is struggling with high production costs and increasingly fierce Chinese competition.
Almost 50,000 jobs have been lost in the sector in the past year, the federal statistics agency said Thursday, a drop of over six percent.
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