Volkswagen CEO says it’s not a ‘fantasy world’ as 100,000 workers strike
Volkswagen CEO Olivier Blume faced a huge booing crowd in Germany today, telling tens of thousands of workers that the company isn’t operating in “a fantasy world” and that plants will be closing and jobs will be lost. Here’s the latest.
On Monday, a hundred thousand workers walked off at nine Volkswagen factories across Germany, including its EV-only factory, bringing assembly lines to a grinding halt in the battle over the slashed pay, lost jobs, and the automaker’s future. Now Blume is locked in an intense dispute with IG Metall, with management pushing for major cuts while workers are threatening more strikes if a fair deal isn’t met.
Today, a group of about 20,000 workers at VW’s main plant in Wolfsburg listened to Blume make the claim that the company has its hands tied. “As management we are not operating in a fantasy world. We are making decisions in a rapidly changing environment,” he told workers, according to Automotive News Europe. Blume added that he grew up in the region and Wolfsburg was close to his heart, but that sentiment was met with roaring boos from the crowd.
Volkswagen and IG Metall are scheduled to meet for a fourth round of talks on December 9.
The strike comes after weeks of collective bargaining negotiations in which Volkswagen didn’t back down from its plan to potentially cut thousands of jobs and close factories in Germany – a first in the automaker’s 87-year history in the country. Volkswagen plans to close at least three factories, lay off thousands of workers, and trim pay for those remaining by 10%, all as it fights to stay alive amid stiff competition from China. Volkswagen announced that it would officially close its Audi plant in Brussels where it makes the Audi Q8 E-Tron.
“The price pressure is immense,” Blume said, adding that VW was struggling in its biggest market China and that labor costs in Germany were too high to compete. “We therefore urgently need to take measures to secure the future of Volkswagen,” he said, according to the report. “Our plans for this are on the table.”
A rough comparison of wage data from 2023 shows that, on average, the hourly wage for a worker in the German automobile industry is about 33 euros ($34,72), which has been mostly unchanged in the past few years. Looking at autoworker wages in China, a Reuters analysis of 30 auto firms in the country, including Tesla, SAIC, and Xpeng, shows hourly wages of 14 yuan ($1.93) to 31 yuan ($4.27). BYD posted a position last year at its Shenzhen factory with a monthly income starting at 5,000 yuan, or $688.
Meanwhile, Blume makes about $10 million a year, with reports saying that wage cuts haven’t included his own. VW’s labor council head Daniela Cavallo has criticized Blume for not being willing to make sacrifices in management and among the shareholders. She said the union is aiming for a deal to be finalized by Christmas. “That will mean compromises. Concessions too. Things that you don’t like and that sometimes hurt you one way or another. But that has to apply to all sides,” she said. “Otherwise, it’s not a compromise.”
This comes at a time when VW is radically restructuring its business to cut costs, while seeking to streamline production and development processes, shaving off months on the development cycles of specific projects to help tighten the belts, all while rethinking its EV retail model to stay more competitive. Volkswagen has been facing a steep decline in sales in China, which is its core market, while simultaneously facing challenges from BYD and other Chinese automakers entering the European market.
As an aside, the strikes didn’t spread to its factories in the US, where many workers are unrepresented by unions. The United Auto Workers represent only one Volkswagen plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee, but they were not involved in the European strikes.
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The best-selling Genesis vehicle in North America is getting even better. Genesis updated the GV70 and Electrified GV70, giving the already impressive SUV more style, added features, and a refined interior. Ahead of deliveries, we are getting our first look at the upgraded interior of the new Genesis GV70 Electrified.
Genesis unveiled the refreshed Electrified GV70 at the LA Auto Show two weeks ago, fine-tuning the electric SUV inside and out.
One of the first things you will notice is the revamped front end with a redesigned G-Matrix Grille. The charge port is now in the grille and comes exclusively with an NACS port that unlocks access to Tesla’s Supercharger Network.
The new model features the unmistakable Genesis two-line headlamps, now equipped with microlens array (MLA) tech for better sight at night or in low-light areas.
According to Claudia Márquez, chief operating officer of Genesis Motor North America, the new Electrified GV70 offers “all of the utility and interior refinement of a great SUV without sacrificing the fun-to-drive character that Genesis vehicles are known for.”
The interior now includes a massive new 27″ OLED driver and infotainment display. With improved voice recognition, drivers can adjust the windows, control HVAC settings, and more.
2026 Genesis Electrified GV70 interior adds luxury, style
Ahead of deliveries, we are already getting a sneak peek at the updated interior. The latest video from HealerTV reveals the new Genesis Electrified GV70 interior design.
You can see the massive 27″ OLED display at the center. The EV version also differs from the gas-powered GV70, including added ambient mood and a marble-like design on the door panels. The second row also gains ambient lighting and what appears to be a touchscreen for the heat and air controls.
Overall, the new Genesis Electrified GV70 interior maintains its lavish, clean look. Even little details like suede seats with white stitching and white seat belts add to the luxurious feel inside the cabin.
The design isn’t the only upgrade. With a bigger 84 kWh battery, up from 77.4 kWh in the previous model, the new Genesis Electrified GV70 is expected to feature more driving range.
Although no specs were given, the new EV models are expected to gain a few extra miles of range, similar to the updated Hyundai IONIQ 5. The 2025 Hyundai IONIQ 5 gets up to 318 miles of range with the same larger battery, compared to 303 in the previous version.
Check back soon for more details. The new Genesis Electrified GV70 is expected to arrive at US dealerships in the first half of 2025.
Ready to check out the electric Genesis luxury SUV for yourself? With the new 2026 models arriving soon, Genesis is offering up to $12,750 off the 2025 Electrified GV70 with lease discounts. You can use our link to find the best deals on the Genesis GV70 at a dealer near you.
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Environment
EV tax credit is ‘catastrophically stupid,’ says incoming Ohio Senator and ‘car czar’ Bernie Moreno
Republican nominee for U.S. Senate Bernie Moreno addresses supporters at Brecksville Community Center on November 4, 2024 in Brecksville, Ohio.
Stephen Maturen | Getty Images
Republican Senator-elect Bernie Moreno, who made his living as a luxury car dealer before running against and defeating Democrat Sherrod Brown in the large manufacturing state of Ohio, said he is aiming to become the “car czar” within the Senate for the next Trump administration.
If Moreno is to fill that role, one of the first things he would target is eliminating the up to $7,500 tax credit that can be used to buy or lease an electric vehicle.
“At the end of the day, the $7,500 incentive is catastrophically stupid,” Moreno told CNBC D.C. Correspondent Emily Wilkins at the 2024 CNBC CFO Council Summit in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday.
Some senators, like Michigan’s Elissa Slotkin, who was criticized by her Republican challenger Mike Rogers for her support of the Biden administration’s embrace of electric vehicles, have looked to frame their support of the tax credit as a defensive move aiding the auto industry in its battle with Chinese auto manufacturers.
However, Moreno told Wilkins he views that position as “nonsense,” adding that the government should not “tell companies what to do and how to have a strategy.”
“If you don’t care what kind of car they drive, then let the markets work,” Moreno said. “We’re going to let the marketplace decide what kind of cars people should drive, and if it’s electric, great.”
Moreno pushed back against the argument that reversing Inflation Reduction Act incentives like the EV tax credit would effectively cede a key technology race to China. He said that if China is “dramatically ahead of us on EVs – good for them; we’re dramatically ahead of them in terms of combustion and hybrids.”
“So as a country, where do you prefer our industry to go? The places where we have a strategic advantage and not hand an industry over to China?” Moreno said. Moreno added that a change in U.S. law as it relates to the EV incentives is “not be handing it them” but a reflection that “consumers have spoken.”
“There’s never been a case in time where consumers have been more clear about what they want and don’t want,” Moreno said. “There’s people who EVs are great for them, and good for you, that car works for you, you should go out and buy it … But for a lot of people, they don’t want it.”
The euphoria that surrounded EV investment and sales has largely died out at major auto manufacturers, and automakers from Ford Motor and General Motors to Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen, Jaguar Land Rover and Aston Martin have announced plans to scale back or delay some electric vehicle plans.
While electric vehicle sales are still expected to increase in the coming years, the boom in consumer demand for EVs that many car CEOs expected never materialized. “What we saw in ’21 and ’22 was a temporary market spike where the demand for EVs really took off,” Marin Gjaja, chief operating officer for Ford’s EV unit, told CNBC earlier this year. “It’s still growing but not nearly at the rate we thought it might have in ’21, ’22.”
Instead, automakers are shifting their focus to a more mixed offering of vehicles with lineups of gas-powered cars alongside hybrids and EVs, rather than more towards plans like the all-electric by 2035 mandate laid out by GM CEO Mary Barra.
“We’re going to let the marketplace work,” Moreno said. “We’re going to create an environment for car companies to be able to have a good tax environment, a good regulatory environment and good workforce … Let the marketplace work; stop the madness of government intervention in corporations and the marketplace will take care of it.”
GM and EVgo have now reached the milestone of installing more than 2,000 co-branded public DC fast chargers in the US.
The latest addition is a new fast charging station in Murrieta, California, off Interstate 215 in Riverside County. The station features five 350 kW fast chargers that can serve up to 10 EVs at once, and it’s near restaurants, coffee shops, and retail.
The GM and EVgo partnership has resulted in DC fast chargers at over 390 locations in 45 metro markets across 32 states, focusing on spots like grocery stores, shopping centers, and city centers. Their goal is to make charging convenient for those who can’t do it at home, such as renters or people living in apartments. For those folks, finding a nearby fast charger can be a game-changer.
The GM and EVgo partnership is on track to reach its goal of 2,850 DC fast chargers nationwide. It plans to build 400 at flagship locations in major markets, including California, Florida, New York, and Michigan.
It’s been fast progress, too. In August 2023, GM and EVgo brought their 1,000th charging stall online in the Chicago suburb of Woodbridge, Illinois. In just 16 months, they’ve doubled their shared EV footprint, including at highway rest stops along interstate routes.
Wade Sheffer, vice president of GM Energy, said, “Our collaboration with EVgo underscores our dedication to providing EV drivers with the best possible experience by expanding reliable fast charging infrastructure across the country.”
Read more: Tesla loses out to EVgo in Oklahoma’s NEVI EV charger rollout
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