VW CEO Tells Workers Their Cost-Cutting Plan Is Not Enough

  • Labor leader tells workers concessions needed to reach deal
  • About 20,000 workers attend assembly after walkout this week
Workers stage a temporary walkout warning strike at the Volkswagen AG factory in Zwickau, Germany, on Dec. 2.Photographer: Iona Dutz/Bloomberg
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Volkswagen AG Chief Executive Officer Oliver Blume told workers that current union proposals to cut costs offer a starting point for negotiations but don’t go far enough to address flagging competitiveness at the carmaker’s namesake brand.

“We, the management, are not operating in a world of make-believe,” Blume told thousands of workers gathered at an assembly in Wolfsburg. “We are making decisions in a rapidly changing environment. We are concerned about the future of our company.”