Daniela Cavallo, chairman of the trade union, states in a speech outside Volkswagen's headquarters in Wolfsburg, Germany, that the car giant wants to close factories to reduce costs and thereby become more competitive.
The cutbacks planned by the company risk "tens of thousands of jobs" in Germany, according to Cavallo. The union also claims that the car manufacturer wants to push through wage cuts of 10 percent.
It was already known in September that the company is considering closing factories in Germany. Volkswagen does not want to comment on potential changes, but tells Bloomberg that the situation is "serious".
"We are not productive enough at our German facilities," says CEO Thomas Schäfer in a comment.
In September, Volkswagen lowered its forecast for the second time this year due to weak demand for passenger cars. The company will release its report for the third quarter on Wednesday, where it is expected to report decreased sales.
It's not just Volkswagen that's struggling right now. Companies like Mercedes-Benz and BMW are also struggling with declining sales, not least in China.
