VW employees protest cost-cutting plans, demand future strategy

Employees at Volkswagen's Kassel-Baunatal plant are voicing strong opposition to the company's latest cost-cutting measures. The works council and the IG Metall union organized an extraordinary assembly to protest the planned cutbacks, with around 200 representatives and employees gathering outside the plant. "The mood in the plant is very tense," said works council chairman Carsten Büchling. "Many are worried and are now angry with this management, with this board, because there is no proper information." Büchling criticized the board's communication as a "disaster" and accused management of pitting different sites against each other. He urged unity in fighting for the plant's future and solidarity with colleagues whose jobs are at risk. The union and works council are demanding a "coherent future strategy" from the board, not just more austerity programs. "We expect respect for our work. We demand respect for the employees. We demand respect for the families whose future depends on these jobs here," stated Dennis Schindehütte, deputy representative of IG Metall North Hesse. Fears are particularly high regarding media reports that the board might spin off the company's components division into a separate entity. Büchling warned that such a move would "bring us into a very, very uncertain situation" and could lead to drastic reductions in the workforce at the Baunatal facility, which employs approximately 15,000 people.

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The mood in the plant is very tense. Many are worried and are now angry with this management, with this board, because there is no proper information.