What to know

• VW CEO Oliver Blume told workers that roughly half of the carmaker's global job cuts—potentially 140,000 total—must occur in Germany to close a 30% cost disadvantage versus competitors.
• German corporate law requires union and Lower Saxony approval on the supervisory board; both hold blocking power over Blume's restructuring plans, limiting his unilateral authority.
• Union leaders signaled damaged trust in Blume and called management's 8-10% margin targets unrealistic, citing US tariffs, Chinese EV competition, and declining China sales as ongoing headwinds.

Oliver Blume Volkswagen CEOUnion leadership Labor representatives on VW supervisory boardLower Saxony State government, holds blocking votes on VW supervisory board