Nov. 3 at 5:09 PM
$VLKAY Volkswagen Chief Executive Oliver Blume
$VLKAF said the auto giant’s cost-cutting plans cannot be avoided because it needs to fix “decades of structural problems” at the company, German Sunday newspaper Bild am Sonntag reported.
In an interview, Blume reportedly said VW’s “structural problems” were revealed by “the weak market demand in Europe and significantly lower earnings from China.”
Daniela Cavallo, the head of VW works council, said last week that the company plans to shutter at least three plants in Germany, cut tens of thousands of jobs, and shrink its remaining factories in the country.
VW has yet to confirm the plans, but it asked workers on Wednesday to accept a 10% cut in pay.
Blume reportedly told Bild AM Sonntag that VW’s competitiveness has been hindered by the costs of operating in the country, saying, “Our costs in Germany must be massively reduced.”
The report said VW has put around 900M euros (
$975.1M) aside to carry out the cost-cutting program.