Auto industry
Audi speaks to the works council about the difficult situation
The employment guarantee is there – but how can layoffs be avoided? The head of the works council speaks out after a report about job cuts.
The Audi board speaks to the works council about the consequences of the difficult situation for the car manufacturer. However, the company reiterated that the agreement to secure employment will continue to apply unchanged until 2029.
General works council head Jörg Schlagbauer said that, as agreed, “in difficult economic times, the works council and the company talk about how redundancies can be avoided for operational reasons. Everything else is rumors and speculation in which we do not take part.”
“Manager Magazin” reports that Audi wants to cut several thousand jobs in Germany in the medium term. The target is 4,500 jobs outside of production. More than 2,000 jobs would be at stake in development alone.
Clear structures and faster decisions are aimed for
Schlagbauer said: “We are in discussions with the company about the content goals to make Audi weatherproof, but not yet in negotiations. We are interested in clear structures, faster decision-making, improved processes and more added value at Audi.”
Audi employs around 54,000 people in Germany. In 2019, Audi agreed with the works council on a “socially acceptable reduction of up to 9,500 jobs along the demographic curve by 2025”. According to Audi, the program is largely completed.
An Audi spokeswoman emphasized that the employment guarantee until 2029 had not been terminated and stood. CFO Jürgen Rittersberger also confirmed this on Tuesday when presenting the quarterly figures. However, new hires are only “hand-picked”. The focus is on increasing efficiency and competitiveness.
Bad annual results foreseeable
The operating profit of the Volkswagen subsidiary Audi fell by 91 percent to 106 million euros in the third quarter. Only thanks to the luxury brands Lamborghini and Bentley did the brand group just manage to get into the black. The reasons are the slump in sales of the Audi brand and high provisions for the possible closure of the plant in Brussels. Audi expects sales and profits in 2024 to be significantly below the previous year.
dpa
Source: Stern
