Uproar in Germany

“Winter is coming”: VW workers now want more pay

Numerous VW workers gathered in Hanover at the start of the wage round.

(Bild: AFP/Ronny HARTMANN)

According to the company, the pressure to cut costs at car giant Volkswagen is enormous, with plant closures and tens of thousands of jobs at stake. But turbulent times do not protect against collective bargaining. Europe's largest car manufacturer is shivering.

The German trade union IG Metall is also demanding job security for around 120,000 VW employees beyond 2030 and is threatening strikes from December. IG Metall chief negotiator Thorsten Gröger said on Wednesday in Hanover that, if necessary, tens of thousands of VW employees would take to the streets and the factory gates from December 1.

The tone of the negotiations is getting rough
The signs are pointing to escalation: "Winter is coming - and if necessary, we will really heat up the Board of Management," said the trade unionist. The conflict with VW has only just begun.

In the wage negotiations, IG Metall is demanding, among other things, a 7 percent increase for employees. This demand stands, said Gröger. Volkswagen had terminated a number of collective agreements, including the employment guarantee that had been in place for three decades and was actually due to run until 2029.

Volkswagen emphasizes cost-cutting constraints
VW reaffirmed its savings targets at the start of collective bargaining with IG Metall. Employees are being threatened with pay cuts. "The situation is serious, we need cost reductions in order to finance investments in the future," said VW chief negotiator Arne Meiswinkel after the three-hour talks. The seven percent demand should be rejected. "This will require a contribution from the employees."

The collective bargaining round, originally planned for the end of October, had been brought forward after VW tightened its austerity measures at the beginning of the month.

The employees are shivering. In fact, Volkswagen is not only demanding a zero but a minus round and wants to reach into the employees' wallets, explained IG Metall. "The bottom line is: plant closures and mass redundancies remain on the table," said IG Metall chief negotiator Gröger. The two sides have not yet agreed a new negotiation date.

The first round of negotiations, in which 49 union representatives and 18 representatives of Volkswagen management took part, lasted three hours. Gröger said that the talks had been cooler at the beginning than in other collective bargaining rounds. IG Metall explained that the management had presented charts intended to make Volkswagen's Germany penalty clear.

We won't make any progress with such an attitude to talks!

VW-Betriebsratschefin Cavallo

Bild: AFP/RONNY HARTMANN

Management mistakes, serious misjudgements of the past and burdens such as the diesel scandal had not been mentioned. In the round of negotiations, nothing had come from the company except a "lament about the tough competitive situation", said works council leader Daniela Cavallo. Now the employer side must live up to its responsibility and say where it wants to go. "We won't get any further with this kind of attitude to talks!"

The German car giant based in Wolfsburg wants to make savings in the face of massive overcapacity in Germany. VW recently announced that it was selling 500,000 fewer cars per year in Europe than before the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic - and these cars would not be coming back. This corresponds to the production of two plants.

Volkswagen in good company
Far fewer cars are coming off the production line at VW factories than a few years ago. However, a Reuters survey of six car manufacturers with plants in Europe shows that the carmaker is not the only one with this problem. Western Europe in particular is in a bad position. Ford, Renault and Stellantis are also struggling with overcapacity, according to data from the analysis company GlobalData, which is available to Reuters.