Germany today went on the biggest strike against the company since 2018. In an unprecedented strike, Volkswagen workers in Germany today went ahead with the biggest strike the company has seen since 2018.
The IG Metall union, which represents about 120,000 VW workers, approved the strike on November 22, describing it as ” The toughest collective bargaining battle Volkswagen has ever seen.” The strike comes in response to VW’s plans to cut production costs in Europe, at a time when the company faces significant challenges in the Chinese market due to domestic competition, while at the same time there is a decrease in global demand for electric vehicles.
According to the information, VW is proposing a 10% wage cut, thousands of layoffs and the closing of three German factories – something that is happening for the first time in the company’s 87-year history.
The IG Metall union, in cooperation with the VW works council, which has unusually large power compared to other German automakers, had proposed cost savings of 1.6 billion dollars. The proposal included the abolition of staff and management, as well as the reduction of working hours in some factories instead of salary increases.
However, VW’s management rejected the proposal, arguing that it would not bring long-term financial relief. The representative of IG Metall, Thorsten Groeger, said characteristically: “Volkswagen has set fire to our collective agreements and instead of extinguishing this fire in three collective bargaining sessions, the management council is throwing open barrels of gasoline into it.
For its part, Volkswagen declares that the rights of the workers participating in the warning strikes are being violated, while an official response from the company to the developments is expected.
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