Renault says 15,000 jobs are being cut worldwide, including 4,600 in France, as it faces a slump in global demand that has been worsened by the COVID-19 crisis.

The French car maker is looking to make $2.2 billion in savings over the next three years. Its restructuring plan involves shrinking production and a freeze on expansion plans in Morocco and Romania.

Renault was described by President Emmanuel Macron earlier this week as one of the "symbols embodying the genius of France."

Company bosses made the announcement on Friday morning at the group's headquarters just outside Paris.

"The status quo is in reality no longer possible, but we need to consult, to work together so that we can make the right decision," said the chairman Jean-Dominique Senard.

"Believe me, each decision, each cost-reduction measure has been reflected on for a long time.

"It's our responsibility to make difficult decisions, and we're confident these are the right decisions."

The executives' comments that it is in Renault's DNA to be "responsible and considerate" were dismissed by angry employees.

"Imagine after the stress, after employees were furloughed, after the previous investments they've seen, there's a whole workforce here rich in skills," said Pierre La Menahes, a former Renault worker.

"So given all that, the reaction will be explosive, and that's legitimate."

Earlier this week the president announced an injection of $8.8 billion into the country's car industry, calling for a push for more hybrid and electric vehicles. 

The French government has shown it is willing to offer a helping hand to ailing companies. There is a $5.5 billion loan on the table for Renault but the company must satisfy strict criteria in much the same way as the government attached conditions to the bailout that it sanctions for Air France.

Renault is part of a global alliance with Nissan and Mitsubishi and while it hopes to cut costs by producing more cars jointly, its Japanese partners this week also outlined cost-saving measures affecting workers in other European countries. Employees in Barcelona burnt tyres in the street to protest against the closure of a factory.

There was a sigh of relief among one group of Renault workers.

Employees at a factory in Caudan, north-west France, had been on strike all week ahead of the anticipated closure of the plant.

Instead, Renault said the production site would be placed under strategic review.

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