VW CEO Blume faces pivotal board vote on 100,000 job cuts

Volkswagen CEO Oliver Blume is heading into what analysts describe as the biggest test of his leadership: a supervisory board meeting on Thursday, July 9, where he will seek approval for a restructuring plan that could eliminate up to 100,000 jobs worldwide and shutter four production plants in Germany.cnbc+1

The proposal, first reported by German business magazine Manager Magazin on June 26 and confirmed by multiple outlets, would represent the most far-reaching overhaul in the nearly 90-year history of Europe's largest automaker by sales.reuters+1

The Plan

The restructuring calls for closing factories in Hanover, Zwickau, and Emden, along with Audi's facility in Neckarsulm. It would also cut planned investment by about 15% to just over €130 billion over the next five years, and includes a proposal to spin off the core VW brand and parts operations into separate entities.hrexecutive+2

The 100,000 job cuts would double the 50,000 reductions that Volkswagen's management and unions agreed to in late 2024, when IG Metall, Germany's powerful industrial union, secured a deal that was supposed to rule out factory closures and compulsory redundancies through the end of 2030. The company had roughly 657,400 employees at the end of the first quarter of 2026.cnbc+2

Why Now

The urgency stems from a collapse in Volkswagen's China business, once its most profitable market. The company's deliveries in China fell 14.1% year-on-year in the first quarter of 2026, extending a slide that has seen annual sales drop from a peak of 4.2 million vehicles in 2019 to 2.9 million in 2025. Broader Chinese car sales have declined for eight consecutive months.reuters+2

As Reuters reported on Sunday, Blume and CFO Arno Antlitz view the restructuring as essential to fending off Chinese rivals whose lower-cost electric vehicles are reshaping global competition.reuters+1

The Obstacles

The plan faces fierce resistance. Half of Volkswagen's supervisory board seats are held by labor representatives, and German politicians have spoken out against the closures. Industry observers expect the July 9 discussions to be prolonged rather than produce an immediate decision, with a final agreement likely to involve negotiations over voluntary buyouts, production shifts, and the scope of capacity reductions.cbtnews+1

"Never has the risk situation been so high," one source familiar with the plans told Manager Magazin. With Volkswagen's shares trading near 16-year lows, the outcome of Wednesday's meeting could determine whether Blume retains the authority to remake Europe's industrial flagship — or whether the company's entrenched labor structures once again blunt the scale of reform.globalbankingandfinance+1