The agreement between IG Metall and Volkswagen is a compromise, but it is tougher than it appears at first glance. Since the British Allies laid the foundation for the company in its current form in Wolfsburg after the Second World War, VW has weathered all crises without closing plants in Germany, often through questionable bargaining. Now the market is forcing excess capacity to be reduced. The socially acceptable reduction of 35,000 jobs will be spread over six years. Nevertheless, the program can relieve VW if it is implemented consistently. Managers like Herbert Diess What is irritating about the solution is the distribution of the burden. VW emphasizes that large locations in Lower Saxony such as Wolfsburg, Emden and Hanover are facing considerable efforts. The small factory in Osnabrück is likely to be sold if an investor can be found. But the East is clearly the loser in the poker between the union, management and major shareholders. The electric car factory in Zwickau, which was converted with 1.2 billion euros in investment, is losing most of its work to Wolfsburg and Emden. This means a significant surplus of personnel and is even more serious than the end of production in Dresden, where the “Gläserne Manufaktur” has long had a niche existence.More on the topic Managers like Herbert Diess bear responsibility. The former CEO ignored all warnings when he switched plants like Zwickau entirely to electric cars, even though it was not clear that the market was developing as hoped. The state of Lower Saxony, as a major shareholder, also supported the strategy. Now Prime Minister Stephan Weil (SPD) is holding his hand over his own locations, while employees in Saxony are being burdened disproportionately. The influence of politics remains the group’s greatest weakness. VW needs independent supervisory boards to provide more specialist expertise to the phalanx of IG Metall, the State Chancellery and the Porsche and Piëch shareholder families. The corporate culture must change, VW must become more flexible. Cost reductions are just one of many steps on the way out of the crisis.
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