VW and IG Metall: Painful cuts, but jobs secured until 2030!

VW and IG Metall: Painful cuts, but jobs secured until 2030!

The news is making waves: Volkswagen is facing a massive restructuring that will noticeably affect its workforce in Germany. It has been known for a year that the car company wants to introduce drastic cost-cutting measures, including redundancies and site closures. This has led to disputes with IG Metall, which has to vehemently defend itself against the cuts. The results of these negotiations can be read in the balance sheet of IG Metall district manager Thorsten Gröger, who draws an initial balance in a recent conversation with the “Wolfsburger Allgemeine Zeitung”. News38 reports that the reduction of 35,000 jobs is the biggest cut in decades and will particularly put a heavy burden on the Wolfsburg location and the Osnabrück region.

The situation is getting worse: the Osnabrück location in particular, with around 2,300 employees, is facing massive challenges. “Over the past few months, the employees have protested against the cuts and fought for their rights,” says Gröger. IG Metall has proven that it cannot simply be fobbed off and has repeatedly drawn clear red lines: maintaining the locations and protecting employees were the top priority.

Results of collective bargaining

After more than 70 hours of intensive negotiations between IG Metall and Volkswagen, a comprehensive collective bargaining agreement was finally reached, which will influence the rigid regulations in the company. Igmetall.de reports that operational dismissals are excluded until 2030, and that employees have decided to forego direct wage increases in the short term. This means the job guarantee will last until the end of the decade and the works will remain in place for now.

As a result of this agreement, the immediate reduction of jobs and the closure of plants have been averted, which provides temporary reassurance for the affected employees. For VW, however, this means a massive adjustment of production capacities, which are to be reduced by 734,000 units. Gröger emphasizes that despite the painful cuts, securing employment and investment commitments are the top priority. Before the next round of collective bargaining in 2026, Gröger announced that it will not only be about salary increases, but also about important framework conditions such as tax incentives for electric cars or affordable electricity prices.

A look into the future

The future holds some challenges: The Osnabrück site is in jeopardy, and production here is scheduled to end by 2027 unless a viable overall concept is developed. Tagesschau reports that employees resisted the cuts on two warning strike days - around 100,000 employees took part, a clear message to company management.

Gröger draws a mixed conclusion and explains that the trust of many employees is still shaken. However, IG Metall has achieved good scope for action, which makes it possible to react to the changes and set future goals. Another point that Gröger notes is the company's significant investment activity, which is unprecedented in VW's history and is intended to help make the necessary adjustments humane.

These collective bargaining negotiations and the associated decisions show once again how important it is to have a strong union on the side of employees. The next few months will bring challenges, but also the opportunity to redesign the working world at Volkswagen.