Workers at nine Volkswagen car and component plants across Germany went on strike for several hours on Monday, IG Metall union said, bringing assembly lines to a halt as labour and management clashed over the future of the carmaker's German operations.
Thousands are expected to gather at the carmaker's headquarters in Wolfsburg. Demonstrations are also expected at the Hanover plant, which employs around 14 000 people, and other component and auto plants including Emden, Salzgitter and Brunswick.
The strikes, which could escalate into 24-hour or unlimited strikes if a deal is not struck in the next round of wage negotiations, will put a dent in Volkswagen's output at a time when the carmaker is already facing declining deliveries and plunging profit.
"How long and how intensive this confrontation needs to be is Volkswagen's responsibility at the negotiating table," said IG Metall negotiator, Thorsten Groeger, on Sunday.
A company spokesperson on Sunday said the carmaker respected workers' right to strike had taken steps to ensure a basic level of supplies to customers and minimise the strike's impact.
The union last week proposed measures it said would save 1.5 billion euros ($1.6 billion), including forgoing bonuses for 2025 and 2026, which Europe's top carmaker dismissed.
Volkswagen has demanded a 10% wage cut, arguing it needs to slash costs and boost profit to defend market share.
The company is also threatening to close plants in Germany, a first in its 87-year history.
An agreement not to stage walkouts ended on Saturday, enabling workers to carry out strikes from Sunday across VW AG's German plants.
The labour union called on employees of the plants housed under subsidiary Volkswagen Sachsen GmbH, which includes VW's EV-only plant Zwickau, to strike on both Monday and Tuesday.
Negotiations will continue on 9 December over a new labour agreement, with unions vowing to resist any proposals that do not provide a long-term plan for every VW plant.
(Report by Reuters)
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