BERLIN, Dec 10 (NNN-DPA) – Another wave of warning strikes hit Volkswagen factories across Germany yesterday, as tens of thousands of workers walked out, to protest against the automaker’s controversial cost-cutting plans, which include mass layoffs and unprecedented closures of German plants.
This marks the second major strike in years for Volkswagen, following a similar demonstration just a week earlier, when 100,000 employees walked off production lines for two hours.
According to the strike organiser, IG Metall, one of Germany’s most influential trade unions, Monday’s labour action involved a four-hour stoppage at nine of Volkswagen’s 10 German plants. At the Wolfsburg headquarters alone, 38,000 workers participated in the protest.
The strike aims to ramp up pressure on management, ahead of the fourth round of collective bargaining talks. IG Metall and the works council are demanding that, the company abandon its cost-cutting measures targeting employees, which include factory closures, mass layoffs, and a 10-percent wage cut across the board.
IG Metall chairwoman, Christiane Benner, said in a speech that, the workers are willing to compromise, but both sides need to “approach each other.” The union proposed reducing working hours as a solution to meeting the company’s goal of saving 1.5 billion euros (1.59 billion U.S. dollars), rather than resorting to job cuts or plant closures. Benner warned of escalating worker actions, if negotiations fail.
However, Volkswagen hopes to seek alternative solutions. The company rejected the works council’s proposal in previous talks, concerned that merely shortening working hours or cutting employee bonuses would not provide a sustainable solution to the high-cost challenges it faces.
Volkswagen’s restructuring plans have been under discussion for weeks. The company aims to make significant cost reductions to reverse its declining financial performance and maintain global competitiveness, which has been burdened by high labour costs in Germany, and the auto industry’s challenges of shifting to electric vehicles.
Arne Meiswinkel, Volkswagen’s chief negotiator, stressed the necessity of reducing costs through mass layoffs, pointing to the company’s weakened profit margins of just 2.1 percent in the third quarter. He said, in a previous statement, successful operations, which could be achieved through such measures, are “a prerequisite for job security.” (1 euro = 1.06 U.S. dollar)– NNN-DPA
