Overview
- The supervisory board reportedly voted down Oliver Blume’s ‘Zukunftsplan’ at its meeting on Thursday, leaving the package unapproved and forcing further talks between management, labour representatives and regional stakeholders.
- Management’s proposal calls for cutting model complexity by about half, slashing equipment and variant options by up to 75 percent, and reducing production to roughly nine million cars a year by 2030 to restore margins.
- Media and internal sources have named figures of up to 100,000 jobs at risk (some outlets cite as many as 120,000) and identified four German sites—Zwickau, Emden, Neckarsulm and Hannover—as potentially affected, but VW has not confirmed final numbers or closures.
- The works council, led by Daniela Cavallo, says it has lost trust in Blume after his handling of communications, issued an ultimatum and has scheduled Betriebsversammlungen for after the summer break where the CEO must face employees.
- Blume has pushed for ‘intelligent solutions’ to avoid factory closures and stressed recent German factory cost cuts, while suppliers and regional politicians warn that reduced volumes and a smaller portfolio could hit jobs and local supply chains and intensify competitive pressure from Chinese automakers.