Volkswagen employees will begin striking next week as union leaders and the German auto company failed to agree on how to cut costs amid a slow electric-vehicle market and fierce competition, a union official said Friday.

An agreement not to hold strikes ended on November 30. "Accordingly, strikes are possible and also necessary from the beginning of December," the union said. "Volkswagen will determine at the negotiating table how long and how hard the conflict will be - the VW workforce throughout the country is ready to strike," it added.

BERLIN (Reuters) -Workers at Volkswagen could go out on strike across Germany as soon as next week, the IG Metall union said in a notice on Friday, as a clash between labour and management over layoffs and plant closures escalates.

Volkswagen workers are set to strike in Germany in early December and union IG Metall said in a circulated pamphlet that it is "necessary". View on euronews