German union chief slams Volkswagen CEO over possible plant closures

Volkswagen management is making a "big mistake" by considering further job cuts and possible plant closures, IG Metall union leader Christiane Benner said ahead of a supervisory board meeting on the carmaker's cost-cutting plans.

Benner told the Augsburger Allgemeine newspaper that she would oppose any closure of Volkswagen plants in Emden, Zwickau, Hanover or Audi's Neckarsulm site at the meeting, which media reports said was due to take place on Friday.

She said an agreement reached with management at the end of 2024 required the company to honour commitments made to workers, adding that employees had accepted financial sacrifices in exchange for future prospects.

Volkswagen is already planning to cut 50,000 jobs by 2030, but management under chief executive Oliver Blume believes further savings are needed. Tens of thousands of additional jobs could be at risk, while the future of several German plants remains uncertain. Blume has said the plants currently have no competitive level of capacity utilization for the 2030s.

"It is a big mistake by Volkswagen management to put the plants in Emden, Zwickau, Hanover and Neckarsulm at risk of closure, seek to cut another 50,000 jobs and at the same time announce that the operating margin must rise from 3.8% most recently to 8%-10% by 2030," Benner said.

She also said Volkswagen had a social responsibility towards regions heavily dependent on its plants. Around 30,000 jobs depend on the Emden plant in northern Germany, she said, while Zwickau is particularly important for eastern Germany, where one in four jobs is linked to the automotive industry.

Volkswagen must keep both plants operating at full capacity with new models and find new business models for the sites, Benner said.

"The approach taken by Volkswagen's management makes me angry: Why is Blume's management unsettling workers in Emden and Zwickau now when we have plenty of time to develop prospects for both sites?" Benner said.

Benner also accused Blume of poor communication, saying announcements about further cuts and plant closures had created confusion and undermined morale among workers.