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🇩🇪 Germany /Economy & Trade

Volkswagen: “A company like Xpeng could be interesting for German plants”

From Die Zeit · () German

Translated from German and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

Interview Named sources Ongoing story
  • IG Metall chair Christiane Benner said labor representatives secured major changes to Volkswagen’s transformation plan.
  • She said proposed job-cut figures remain planning assumptions and that workers did not agree to close any plants.
  • Benner said a company such as Xpeng could potentially be an option for threatened German factories.

Christiane Benner rejects the idea that the recent power struggle at Volkswagen can be reduced to a simple victory for management or labor. “That is not the decisive question for me,” she said. “Our concern is the employees.”

That is not the decisive question for me. Our concern is the employees.

· Christiane BennerShe responded to a question about whether management or labor had won Volkswagen’s recent power struggle.

Benner, the chair of IG Metall and an employee representative on Volkswagen’s supervisory board since 2025, said workers secured important changes during negotiations over the company’s savings and transformation plans. The board had to substantially revise its strategy, she said, and the proposed job-cut figures do not automatically determine what will happen.

“The figures put forward by the board are calculations and are not set in stone,” Benner said. She also rejected reports that labor representatives had agreed to plant closures. “Unlike what has been reported in some media, we did not agree to any plant closures.”

The figures put forward by the board are calculations and are not set in stone.

· Christiane BennerShe said the proposed job-cut numbers do not automatically determine the final outcome.

The interview also addressed the future of German factories facing uncertainty. Benner said a Chinese manufacturer such as Xpeng could be an interesting option for a German plant. Her comments reflect the continuing dispute over jobs, factory locations and the direction of Volkswagen’s transformation.

Unlike what has been reported in some media, we did not agree to any plant closures.

· Christiane BennerShe denied that employee representatives had approved factory closures.
About this summary

Originally published by Die Zeit in German. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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