Volvo's Ghent plant is looking for 350 new workers. Volvo's EX30 electric car will also be produced in Ghent, which means extra hands are needed. Volvo Ghent will recruit a new temporary workforce. New staff will not be given a permanent contract. Currently 6,400 people are employed at Volvo in Ghent.
The EX30 is a successful model today only built in China, but the Swedish-Chinese carmaker is now going to ramp up production at its Ghent plant to bypass European import tariffs and meet high demand in Europe.
It’s good news for the Ghent carmaker, which has had a challenging year with relatively low production capacity. The Ghent plant, one of Volvo's core production sites, experienced a 19 per cent drop in production volume last year, with a total of 186,313 cars produced compared to 230,527 in 2023.
This was because sales of electric vehicles experienced a dip and the start-up of the new production line required a huge amount of preparation. There have also been natural layoffs at the carmaker, but production could again increase sharply in the coming years.
The Volvo EX30, currently the third best-selling electric car in Europe, will also be produced in Ghent from this year on. The expansion of production capacity will not only meet European demand, but the EV will also be exported to other markets worldwide.
Recruitment for the new jobs started this week with a first group of 25 new employees being hired. In total, Volvo Car Gent and temping agency Randstad are looking for about 350 operators. Both starters and experienced candidates are in with a chance. The focus is on ‘technically skilled people with a positive attitude’.