Talks continue between the company and the unions on the wages of 120 thousand workers of the group in Germany. But IG Metall has announced strikes from December 1st
Over 6,000 people protest in Wolfsburg, Volkswagen’s headquarters in Germany, where the third round of wage negotiations are being held. The protesters are demanding a big step from the leadership. The salary discussions are part of the automaker’s announced savings plan that could also lead to the closure of three plants in Germany. The employees who are part of the interviews are 120 thousand out of the 300 thousand hired in the country, employed in six factories regulated by a separate collective wage contract for the rest of the workforce. And on November 21st, at the end of an excited day, the IG Metall union announced that several strikes starting December 1st.
“ultima chance”
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According to the German trade union IG Metall, those demonstrating are employees from all of the group’s factories in the Federal Republic. “All factories must remain,” read the banners. And again, “future instead of mass layoffs”. In chorus the demonstrators also threatened the mobilization: “We are ready!”. “This is just a taste of what will happen in December if the company does not take our proposals seriously”, commented the president of the Works Council Daniela Cavallo. It is “the last chance” for management, warned the local union leader Thorsten Groeger, “if we don’t reach a solution today, there won’t be any and there will be others in November, we will prepare the battle in defense of work”. The company is asking for a 10% pay cut as well as various bonuses and allowances. Without excluding layoffs or plant closures. The IG Metall union and the works council propose setting aside the next salary increase in a fund, for a limited period, without paying it to the employees for the moment.
times
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Ahead of further collective bargaining talks at Volkswagen, the Ig Metall union and the works council have called for an agreement before Christmas. Europe’s largest carmaker faces a deep crisis and management has threatened potential plant closures and mass layoffs in a bid to slash labor costs. “We want to resolve this uncertainty as quickly as possible and let our colleagues know before Christmas how things will go at Volkswagen,” says Cavallo. Workers on Wednesday offered to forgo some future pay increases, for an estimated saving of 1.5 billion euros.
Volkswagen’s location
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At the end of the day of negotiations, on November 21st (the next round of negotiations will be on December 9th), Volkswagen released a note in which its chief negotiator Arne Meiswinkel declared: “We consider it a positive signal that the representatives of workers have shown themselves open to reducing labor costs and capabilities. However, the counter-proposal they have presented needs to be evaluated based on whether it creates sustainable financial relief for the company and offers clear prospects for the workforce. For Volkswagen AG, the sustainable achievement of financial targets remains key to ensuring competitiveness in an extremely difficult phase for the German automotive industry. Volkswagen AG’s goal is to work together with employee representatives to develop a sustainable solution that ensures economic stability, secures employment prospects and restores the balance between profitability and employment.”
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