The European automotive sector employs 3.5 million workers.

Omissions

• The 3.5 million figure refers specifically to manufacturing jobs (direct and indirect) within the EU automotive sector, not to total employment in the sector, which the European Commission puts at around 13.8 million people.
• Other definitions give somewhat different counts: ACEA cites about 2.4–2.6 million direct manufacturing jobs in the EU automotive industry, while Eurofound's EU-LFS-based estimate (Q3 2024) counts 3.12 million jobs in core motor-vehicle subsectors.
• The European Commission page is a live overview page without a clear publication date; the data cited there predates the session date of 2026-07-07 and could have been known to the MEP.

Sources

• PrimaryEuropean Commission — Automotive industry (Single Market and Economy)around 13.8 million people work in the EU automotive sector. Manufacturing (direct and indirect) accounts for 3.5 million jobs, sales and maintenance for 4.5 million, and transport for 5.1 million.
• SecondaryACEA — Auto industry remains the backbone of the European economyAnd more than 11% of all EU manufacturing jobs – some 3.5 million – are in the auto industry.
• SecondaryEurofound — Employment in the EU's automotive sectorThe latest EU Labour Force Survey data (EU-LFS) (Q3 2024) relating to the core subsectors show that there are 3.12 million jobs in motor vehicle ... With an estimated 6.72 million workers, these core elements of the automotive sector accounted for 3% of EU employment in Q3 2024.
• SecondaryCrowell & Moring — The EU Industrial Accelerator Act Proposal's Significance for the Automotive IndustryMotor vehicle manufacturing provides direct and indirect employment for 3.5 million people, and the sector is the largest private investor in ...