Daniela Cavallo, the head of the company’s works council, has stated that the remaining plants in Germany will also be reduced.
The largest automaker in Europe has been haggling with unions for weeks over plans to restructure its operations and reduce expenses, which have skyrocketed due to rising labor and energy costs.
The German company, which runs ten plants and employs over 300,000 people in its native country, has stated that a significant restructure is required.
Ms. Cavallo assured them that the measures were not “sabre-rattling” and that VW was “absolutely serious about all this” at its largest facility in Wolfsburg.
“This is the plan of Germany’s largest industrial group to start the sell-off in its home country of Germany,” she said, threatening to end negotiations with the unions.
She did not say how many workers could be let go or which plants would be impacted.
Cost increases, fierce Asian competition, declining demand in China and Europe, and a slower-than-anticipated shift to electric vehicles are all putting significant pressure on the automaker.
On Wednesday, when management and employees gather for the second round of pay negotiations and the automaker reveals its third-quarter results, it said it will provide ideas for reducing labor expenses.
