In the dispute over the new savings plans at VW, the company has taken the first steps: the job guarantee that has been in place since 1994 has now been terminated. The works council has announced resistance.
Volkswagen has now formally terminated the job security that has been in place since 1994. The corresponding letter of termination has been sent to the union, Europe’s largest carmaker announced. The contract will therefore expire at the end of the year. Six months later, redundancies for operational reasons will be possible, i.e. from July 2025.
In addition to the employment protection agreement, which previously excluded such terminations, several other agreements were also terminated, including the guarantee of employment for trainees and the regulations for temporary employment. According to company sources, the company’s management board had previously discussed and decided to terminate the contracts.
Collective bargaining round at VW brought forward
The group wants to negotiate quickly with the union and works council on a new arrangement, as announced by Human Resources Director Gunnar Kilian. The aim is to agree on a follow-up arrangement before the job security expires in mid-2025. “This period now gives us the opportunity to work with employee representatives to find solutions on how we can make Volkswagen sustainably competitive and future-proof,” said Kilian, according to the statement.
“The current phase is contributing to uncertainty. We can counteract this if we create future-proof prospects for our company as soon as possible,” said Kilian. The collective bargaining negotiations on the VW wage agreement, which were originally only planned to begin in October, are to be brought forward and extended to the contracts that have now been terminated. IG Metall had previously offered this.
Works council announces resistance
A week ago, Volkswagen announced that it would end the job guarantee that had been in place for 30 years and that it would no longer rule out plant closures. However, the company has not yet given a date for this to happen. The works council and IG Metall have since been up in arms against the plans.
“Now the company has made what we have been expecting for days a reality,” said works council chairwoman Daniela Cavallo. At the same time, she reiterated her opposition to the plans. “We will defend ourselves bitterly against this historic attack on our jobs. There will be no compulsory redundancies under our management.”
Source: Stern
