Management heads into its fifth round of talks with the powerful IG Metall union today, as the two sides remain deadlocked over how to cut costs at the carmaker’s namesake brand to make it more competitive.

Both sides have aimed for a deal by Christmas, but they have yet to bridge deep divides over potential layoffs and unprecedented factory closings in Germany.

Volkswagen is struggling with waning demand for electric vehicles (EVs) in Europe and increasing competition in China from local manufacturers led by BYD Co.

Two days of negotiations have been planned, but if those don’t yield a breakthrough, IG Metall’s board is prepared to hold a vote at the end of the week to pave the way for 24-hour walkouts across VW factories in January.

Tens of thousands of VW workers temporarily laid down their tools on two occasions this month after management had rejected a union proposal that included lowering dividend payouts and cutting some bonuses.

The messy restructuring is throwing a wrench in the company’s accounting processes.

Volkswagen informed Porsche Automobil Holding SE on Friday that it no longer expects to complete its corporate planning by Dec 31.

That forces the holding company to use analysts’ assumptions to conduct impairment testing on its investment in the automaker.

Porsche SE said in a filing that it assumes a negative non-cash impairment of €7 billion (US$7.3 billion) to €20 billion on the carrying value of its Volkswagen investment.

The holding company is majority owned by the billionaire Porsche-Piëch family.