Volkswagen plans to close at least 3 German plants

BERLIN

Employees demonstrate on the factory premises during an information event organised by the Works Council of Volkswagen Saxony in Zwickau, eastern Germany on Oct. 28, 2024, after auto giant Volkswagen announced plans to close at least three factories in Germany and slash tens of thousands of jobs as part of drastic cost-savings drive.

Volkswagen has informed employee representatives that it wants to close at least three plants in Germany, the head of the company's works council has said.

Employee council chief Daniela Cavallo said at a meeting with Volkswagen workers at the company's Wolfsburg headquarters that management also plans cuts at other sites, and pledged to resist the plans, German news agency dpa reported.

She said that “all German VW plants are affected by these plans. None is safe."

The company didn't give details of its plans . But chief personnel officer Gunnar Kilian said in a statement that “the fact is that the situation is serious and the responsibility of the negotiating partners is enormous.”

Volkswagen said in early September that auto industry headwinds mean it can’t rule out plant closures in its home country, and must drop a job protection pledge in force since 1994 that would have barred layoffs through 2029.

CEO Oliver Blume cited new competitors entering European markets, Germany’s deteriorating position as a manufacturing location and the need to “act decisively.”

“Without comprehensive measures to restore competitiveness, we will not be able to afford significant future investments,” Kilian said.

European automakers are facing increased competition from inexpensive Chinese electric cars. Volkswagen said last month that the company’s half-year results indicated it would not achieve its target of 10 billion euros ($10.8 billion) in cost savings by 2026.

Volkswagen has some 120,000 employees in Germany, where it has 10 plants — six of them in the northern state of Lower Saxony, including Wolfsburg.