Volkswagen According to a media report, the employees and employees have determined how much management will contribute to the current savings plan. The bonus, which is usually paid out in May, should fall so much that the annual income of around 4,000 managers will fall by 10 percent in 2025 and 2026, the “Süddeutsche Zeitung” reported on Sunday without naming sources. In the next three years it is expected to shrink by 8, 6 and 5 percent. The waiver will end in 2030, just like for employees. The whole thing should be regulated in a works agreement, which, according to the report, should already be formulated.
VW declined to comment. Comments will be made when the details of the agreement have been finalized. On Friday, the company officially stated that management would make a “disproportionate” contribution to reducing costs.
Above this management level is the board of directors, which recently earned around 45 million euros per year. The union IG Metall and the works council made a clear statement to the newspaper: “Our expectation is that the board’s waiver will once again stand out from that of the management.” Accordingly, the remuneration of top managers would have to be cut by more than 10 percent.
Lower Saxony is prepared to give up
From the employees’ perspective, shareholders should also refrain from doing so. With what has been agreed so far, there will still be a gap of three billion euros in the board’s savings target by 2031, according to the union and the works council. “The group and the shareholders must now decide on how to structure this contribution.” Works council boss Daniela Cavallo (49) had previously called for the dividend to be reduced. So far, only the Prime Minister of Lower Saxony, Stephan Weil (66; SPD), has given the signal to shareholders that dividends are “not the most important thing”.
VW brand boss Thomas Schäfer (54) announced a stress test for every plant. “With the agreement, we have agreed on clear goals and measures for each location with which we want to achieve competitiveness,” he told “Bild am Sonntag”. Future investment decisions would depend on this. According to the employee side, however, important investments in German plants were agreed as part of the deal.
VW also wants to bring nine new models onto the market by 2027, added Schäfer. “We want to be number one in Europe even in the electric age – with at least three VWs in the top ten ranking in the EU.”