Workers at Volkswagen without permanent employment contracts face job loss due to the repercussions of the emissions test manipulation scandal, representatives of the employees of this largest European automotive group have stated.
– We know that management is discussing such a scenario, but we will do everything to preserve the jobs of our colleagues – said an unnamed employee representative at Volkswagen for the public broadcaster NDR. The elected president of the largest German union IG Metall, Joerg Hoffmann, accused management and major shareholders of Volkswagen in an interview with “Bild am Sonntag” of having a “disgraceful role” amid the scandal involving falsified values of harmful substances in the exhaust emissions of VW’s diesel vehicles. He stated that workers bear no blame for the situation in which VW currently finds itself and that it is logical that workers should not suffer the consequences.
– Unions will strive to ensure that workers do not pay for management’s mistakes – said Hofmann.
After a closed meeting of VW’s management on Sunday evening, its representative could not specify whether there would be layoffs at Volkswagen.
– At the moment, we cannot assess how the situation with vehicle sales will unfold, and with that, the volume of employment – said an unnamed management representative, announcing the possibility of reduced working hours.
