Anger and fear at VW: works council demands determined compromises!

Anger and fear at VW: works council demands determined compromises!

Zwickau, Deutschland - The conflict over the working conditions at Volkswagen (VW) continues to come to a head. IG Metall has launched nationwide warning strikes at various German locations in order to draw attention to the oppressive demands of the employees. In Zwickau on Monday at 9:30 a.m., the first employees resigned their work, followed by protests in Wolfsburg and other works such as Emden, Hanover and Kassel-Baunatal. These warning strikes are directed as a signal to the corporate management, which, according to IG Metall, remains persistent in its maximum demands, while the workforce is worried about its future, such as SPIEGEL

At a works meeting in Wolfsburg, works council chief Daniela Cavallo expressed her clear criticism of the corporate management and described the austerity course of CEO Oliver Blume as unacceptable. While Blume notes that the manufacturing costs in Germany are too high and that an adaptation is necessary, IG Metall calls for an agreement before the approximately 120,000 employees in Germany are under pressure again. "Our works are not competitive," says Antlitz, the CFO of VW, who indicates the need for savings and possibly plant closures. Minister of Labor Hubertus Heil urges the workplaces to be preserved at the works meeting and asked the VW leadership to focus on maintaining the locations, such as Merkur reported.