Accompanied by loud protests against the group’s austerity measures, collective bargaining negotiations with IG Metall have begun at Volkswagen. Several thousand employees protested in front of the negotiation building against the company’s austerity plans, and Bengal torches temporarily enveloped the square in red smoke. Volkswagen rejects IG Metall’s wage demands and threatens to cut wages. “Instead of burdening costs, we need cost relief,” said VW negotiator Arne Meiswinkel, HR director for the Volkswagen core brand, after the first round of negotiations in Hanover. “This will also require a contribution from the employees.” According to the union’s assessment, this would actually amount to a loss. “You have to interpret it that way,” said IG Metall negotiator Thorsten Gröger after the end of the three-hour talks. IG Metall is demanding seven percent more wages at VW, as it is for the entire industry. According to IG Metall, there was no rapprochement in the dispute over possible plant closures and layoffs. “That wasn’t specified, but in general we stayed there,” said Gröger. A new trial date was not initially agreed. However, Gröger hopes that this will take place before the end of November. Several thousand employees protested. IG Metall spoke of more than 3,000 participants in the protest, including employees from Wolfsburg, Emden, Osnabrück and Zwickau. “Future instead of clear-cutting” read one banner, “Abandonment has never helped us” on another. VW’s austerity plans were met with loud boos and chants. While VW is pushing for savings in personnel costs, IG Metall wants to prevent cuts. “We cannot talk about factory closures and mass layoffs,” Gröger made clear before the negotiations. “The equality of employment security and profitability is non-negotiable,” said VW works council boss Daniela Cavallo, who sits at the negotiating table for IG Metall. VW negotiator Meiswinkel referred to the difficult situation, especially with the core Volkswagen brand. “We have to restructure our company together. The situation is serious,” he said. “The task now is to find viable solutions.” At the same time, he dampened hopes of a quick agreement. “The first round of negotiations will be about getting a common picture of the initial situation.”Tariff round brought forwardThe collective bargaining round, which was actually only planned for the end of October, was brought forward after VW tightened its austerity measures at the beginning of the month. Instead of just wages, the employment security that VW terminated should also be negotiated. Initially only the approximately 120,000 employees in the six large West German plants that are covered by the VW company tariff are affected. VW Sachsen has its own regulations. VW had also terminated the job security there.More on the topic IG Metall called on VW to finally put details about the announced savings plans on the table. “So far we have only been left vague,” said Gröger. There was nothing new here in the first round of negotiations either. “That wasn’t specified, but we generally stayed there.” Warning strikes are also possible from December 1st. “Of course we currently have serious problems on the economic side,” said Cavallo. “But you can’t solve it by using factory closures as a threat.” In addition, says Gröger, VW recently reported “no bad profit figures at all” and paid out high dividends to its shareholders. This shows that there is scope there. If VW sticks to its plans, it will “encounter bitter resistance from the workforce at Volkswagen,” announced Gröger. “We are only at the beginning of a dispute with the company that has come to nothing.” Warning strikes are also possible from December 1st. “If necessary, tens of thousands of people will stand in front of the factory gates and on the streets at Volkswagen locations.”
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