December 2, 2024 – According to a report by the Wall Street Journal on November 30th, Volkswagen has recently rejected a cost-saving proposal put forward by the labor union, insisting on a 10% pay cut for its employees.
The labor union had suggested that Volkswagen could adopt cost-saving measures to maintain its operations. However, an insider from the automaker dismissed the union’s proposal, claiming that it was merely a ploy to gain time.
A spokesperson for IG Metall, the German metalworkers’ union, stated that workers have been staging warning strikes since Monday (December 2nd), halting work for several hours each day. The duration of the strikes, the spokesperson added, will depend on the progress of further negotiations.
The report mentioned that Volkswagen employs around 300,000 workers in Germany and operates 10 factories in the country. The strike action, which began this week, involves approximately 120,000 employees across factories in Wolfsburg, Braunschweig, Hanover, Salzgitter, Emden, and Kassel, as well as some subsidiaries.
As previously reported, Volkswagen had demanded a 10% pay cut from its German employees in early November, arguing that it was the only way for the company to save jobs and maintain competitiveness amid falling profits and threats of strikes from the union.
“We urgently need to reduce labor costs to maintain our competitiveness. This requires a contribution from our workforce,” said Arne Meiswinkel, the head of human resources for the Volkswagen brand leading the negotiations.
On October 30th, Volkswagen Group released its third-quarter results for 2024, reporting revenue of 78.48 billion euros, a decrease of 0.5% compared to the same period last year, and operating profit of 2.86 billion euros, a significant drop of 42%.
