Overview
- The supervisory board met in Wolfsburg on July 9 to debate a broad 'plan of the future' that management says is needed to improve competitiveness.
- German media have reported — citing Manager Magazin — that the plan could mean up to 100,000 job cuts worldwide and the possible closure of several German factories, but Volkswagen has neither confirmed nor denied those figures.
- Union leaders from IG Metall and the Volkswagen works council have organized demonstrations and vowed to block any measures they judge unacceptable, using their supervisory-board seats and public mobilization.
- Volkswagen's push for deeper cuts follows weaker results: roughly 9 million vehicles sold in 2025, net income down about 45% to €6.9 billion, and a market value that has more than halved since 2022, with U.S. tariffs, fast-growing Chinese EV makers, and lagging digital and EV technology cited as causes.
- Germany's co-determination system and strong local ties make factory closures legally and politically complex, so negotiations with unions and controlling shareholders — notably the Porsche and Piëch families — are expected to be protracted and will determine whether sites find alternatives such as Osnabrück's talks on defence partnerships.