VW CEO Calls for Unity: "Everyone Must Do Their Part"

VW Group CEO Oliver Blume is preparing the workforce for sweeping cuts and calling for solidarity in the face of a global industry crisis. “The next few weeks will be crucial: Everyone must pull together,” he told *Bild am Sonntag*. “We have drawn up the largest transformation plan in the history of the Volkswagen Group.”

A series of special employee meetings will take place at Volkswagen next week. The employee representatives had demanded details on the cost-cutting plans before the factory holidays. 

“The next few years will be decisive”

“The next few years will be decisive in determining who stays in the race and who takes the lead,” Blume continued. He attributes the enormous pressure to cut costs to fundamental market shifts and global upheavals: “The global auto industry is in a massive crisis. And the Volkswagen Group is right in the middle of it. Geopolitics, trade barriers, regulation, weak markets, and fierce competition are all taking their toll.” Blume appealed to the workforce’s fighting spirit: “For the people, our company, and Germany’s competitiveness as a business location.”

Blume had already announced in the spring that he was working on a new “Vision 2030” for VW and would be significantly tightening cost-cutting measures. Since then, there have been fears within the Group regarding four plants and up to 50,000 additional jobs.

Blume had recently stated in an interview on the VW intranet that the situation at VW was “more than critical.” There is an urgent need for action. While the 3.8 percent return on equity is solid, it is by no means sufficient to generate enough funds on a sustainable basis for new technologies, products, and the company’s locations. 

Executive Board to Address Workforce at Shop Floor Meetings

Volkswagen is entering a critical phase. Over the next few days through the end of August, nine town hall meetings are planned in locations such as Hanover, Braunschweig, Salzgitter, Dresden, Chemnitz, and Kassel-Baunatal, where the Executive Board will answer questions from the workforce. The series kicks off on August 25 in Wolfsburg, followed by Emden and Zwickau the next day, and concludes on August 31 in Hanover. 

With regard to the plants in Emden, Hanover, Zwickau, and Neckarsulm—which have been identified as at risk—Blume stated in an interview that there is currently no competitive production plan for these locations for the 2030s. No decision has been made regarding specific plant closures.