Volkswagen's management and worker representatives will start the third round of wage negotiations on Thursday. There are only 10 days left to find a solution, otherwise the union threatens to escalate the conflict and hold strikes at various factories in Germany. The negotiations involve the salary issue of 120,000 out of around 300,000 employees of Volkswagen in Germany, who are employed at six factories. Volkswagen previously requested a 10% pay cut, citing the competition from Chinese companies and a decrease in demand for autos across Europe. The company urgently needs to cut costs, increase profits to maintain competitiveness, and defend market share. The union proposed on Wednesday to cancel bonuses within two years and establish a fund to temporarily reduce working hours in low-productivity business areas. They stated that these measures would avoid layoffs and save costs of 1.5 billion euros. However, this proposal depends on whether management rules out the possibility of closing factories, which Volkswagen has consistently refused to do.