Oliver Blume, who runs Volkswagen, says things are tough for car companies in Europe right now. New competitors are coming in, and it's getting harder to make cars in Germany and still make money.
VW's brand boss, Thomas Schäfer, agrees. He says they can't fix this by just cutting a few costs here and there. They're thinking about a big shakeup of how they run things, and that could mean shutting down some factories.
The car workers' union, IG Metall, isn't happy about this at all. They say:
"The board of directors today presented an irresponsible plan that shakes the foundations of Volkswagen and poses a massive threat to jobs and locations. This course is not only short-sighted, but also extremely dangerous – it risks destroying the heart of Volkswagen."
VW's not making as much money as it used to. In the first half of this year, they made €10.1 ($11.1) billion in profit. That's 11% less than last year. They sold fewer cars too - about 2% less than before.
It's not just VW that's having problems. In July, Audi, which is part of the VW group, had to stop making some of its electric cars early because not enough people were buying them. They make these cars in Brussels, and now that factory might have to close.
Source: CNBC
