Volkswagen bosses have warned that its German plants are barely profitable ahead of a work contracts meeting with unions on Friday. The carmaker wants to cut production costs for its VW brand vehicles by slashing jobs and extending the working week of staff at six German plants. Unions want some form of compensation and more investment at the sites. They have warned that they will break off from talks if no progress is reached on Friday.
See "VW and unions resume wage talks", BBC News, BBC News Online, September 21, 2006