Volkswagen has demanded a 10% pay cut, arguing that costs need to be cut. In addition, the company is threatening to close factories in Germany for the first time in its 87-year history.
The trade unions of Volkswagen called one strike will begin this Monday at manufacturing plants in Germany to protest management’s plans to cut thousands of jobs, the IG Metall union said.
The start of the strikes marks a new escalation of a dispute between Europe’s largest car manufacturer and its employees massive layoffs, salary cuts and possible factory closures: drastic measures that the company says it cannot rule out in light of Chinese competition and cooling consumer demand.
VW union representatives agreed to do this on November 22 limited downtimes in German operations.
“If necessary, this will be the toughest collective bargaining battle Volkswagen has ever experienced,” IG Metall negotiator Thorsten Groeger said in a statement.
“The duration and intensity of this confrontation is Volkswagen’s responsibility at the negotiating table,” Groeger added.
For its part, the automaker has stated that it remains confident in a constructive dialogue to find a lasting solution.
“Volkswagen respects the right of employees to participate in a strike,” a spokesperson said in response to the union’s announcement, adding that the company had taken steps in advance to ensure a basic level of supply to customers and the minimize the impact of the strike.
The union had proposed measures last week that it said would save 1.5 billion euros, including waiving bonuses for 2025 and 2026, which Europe’s largest carmaker has rejected.
Volkswagen has made a demand 10% pay cutarguing that the country must cut costs and increase profits to defend its market share in the face of cheap competition from China and a drop in demand for cards in Europe. In addition, the company is threatening to close factories in Germany for the first time in its 87-year history.
Labor and management representatives will meet again this month. Negotiations on a new labor contract for the German company’s employees began on September 9, with unions vowing to oppose any proposal that does not provide for a long-term plan for every VW plant.
Source: EITB
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