IG Metall is calling on Volkswagen to rescind the termination of ten collective bargaining agreements by the end of October. Otherwise, the company will face an unprecedented labor dispute. At the same time, IG Metall is urging the employer not to wait until December to begin the first round of collective bargaining in the ongoing dispute, but to start as early as November.
On September 30, 2026, Volkswagen terminated nearly the entire VW in-house collective bargaining framework: the wage collective bargaining agreement, the framework collective bargaining agreement (including working hours), the framework collective bargaining agreement on job classification, the collective bargaining agreement on the granting of additional collective bargaining-based compensation, the collective bargaining agreement on performance and staffing assessment, and parts of the apprenticeship collective bargaining agreement
Not affected are the “Future Collective Bargaining Agreement” with employment protection—which excludes layoffs for operational reasons until 2030—and the partial retirement program, which cannot currently be terminated.
VW Management Wants Layoffs at the State’s Expense
However, the VW Executive Board now wants additional tools to drastically reduce the workforce—specifically, a publicly funded outplacement agency. The employer side made this proposal during the second review meeting on the “Future” collective bargaining agreement.
IG Metall firmly rejects this as a restructuring effort at the taxpayers’ expense. Thorsten Gröger, IG Metall’s chief negotiator, believes the shareholders (who received 2.6 billion in dividends in June) bear primary responsibility. “It is unacceptable for the general public to foot the bill while shareholders continue to pocket dividends.”
According to media reports, the VW Executive Board is also planning wage freezes—with no pay raises—across all Group companies worldwide through 2030. This would affect approximately 660,000 employees in the Group’s global network.
“The Executive Board is focusing its efforts in the wrong direction,” Gröger criticizes. “They should be investing in cars that people want to buy and in markets where Volkswagen can grow. Instead, euro after euro is flowing to management consultants. They bring cutbacks, but not a spark of a future. You don’t win a single customer with layoff lists.”
Employees are already giving up 1.5 billion euros annually
Employees in Germany have long since done their part. Since the agreement on the “Future Collective Bargaining Agreement” at the end of 2024, they have contributed 1.5 billion euros annually toward reducing labor costs. The last pay raise was about two and a half years ago. They are forgoing portions of their profit-sharing and increased vacation pay, and many employees are working longer hours. At the plants, operational adjustments—such as shorter breaks, faster production cycles, and a more intense workload—are adding to the burden. Site by site, efforts are underway to reduce factory costs.
In exchange for the workforce’s sacrifices, Volkswagen has made commitments to each of the ten plants for 2024. These are set forth in the provisions of the “Future Collective Bargaining Agreement” and in the respective site-specific documents. Both bear the employer’s signature. In addition, job security with no possibility of termination applies through the end of 2030. Layoffs for operational reasons are ruled out until then.
“These commitments did not arise in a vacuum. They were hard-fought. And we will continue to insist with all our might that they be honored. We also expect that same loyalty from the Executive Board,” emphasizes Daniela Cavallo, Chair of Volkswagen’s General and Group Works Council. “Anyone who wants to open up new prospects for our locations will always find us to be a constructive partner—and we will also contribute to the necessary structures. Anyone, however, who seeks to renege on existing commitments under the guise of ‘something new’ will face our resolute opposition.”
IG Metall will present its own vision for the future of Volkswagen. The first move is up to the Executive Board; after all, by terminating the collective bargaining agreements, it did not even put forward its own demands.
Strikes at VW Loom Starting in January
IG Metall expects Volkswagen to rescind the terminations of the collective bargaining agreements. The deadline is at the end of October. The peace obligation ends on December 31. Strikes are therefore permitted starting January 1.
“We expect Volkswagen to reverse this breach of trust. There is still time to see reason,” explains Gröger. “If the terminated package stands, it will set in motion a process that paves the way for a massive confrontation involving all stages of escalation in the labor dispute. That cannot be the Executive Board’s goal.”
IG Metall Bargaining Committee Demands a 5 Percent Pay Increase
At the end of September, the IG Metall bargaining committee at Volkswagen AG finalized its demand for the 2026 collective bargaining round: a 5 percent pay increase over a twelve-month period. In addition, the collective bargaining agreement is to include a social component that will particularly benefit lower pay grades. In doing so, the bargaining committee at VW AG—where a company-specific collective bargaining agreement applies—is following IG Metall’s demand for the metal and electrical industries.
Labor cost ratio has fallen by 2.3 percent since 2021
“We know that Volkswagen faces major challenges. But the answer to that cannot be to pit employees against the company’s future,” explains IG Metall negotiator Thorsten Gröger. Wages aren’t even the problem at VW. The group’s labor cost ratio has been falling for years—from 17.5 percent in 2021 to 15.2 percent in 2025, according to VW’s annual report. Even halving the wages under VW’s in-house collective bargaining agreement would only make the vehicles about 5 percent cheaper.
From the perspective of the VW bargaining committee and works council, the key issues lie in products, technology, innovation, and speed. A significant portion of the current cost burdens stems from one-time items and restructuring costs—including approximately six billion euros in non-cash write-downs related to Porsche.
Shareholders will receive 2.6 billion euros
Under the future collective bargaining agreement set to take effect at the end of 2024, employees will forgo 1.5 billion each year to give Volkswagen time and leeway for investments, new products, and the future of its locations.
At the same time, however, VW distributed approximately 2.6 billion euros in dividends to shareholders as recently as the end of June. The largest shareholder, holding 53.3 percent of the common stock, is Porsche SE, which is controlled by the Porsche and Piëch families.
Get the latest news and background on the collective bargaining round at VW from IG Metall Lower Saxony-Saxony-Anhalt.
Background: Unlike other automakers, where IG Metall’s industry-wide collective bargaining agreements for the metal and electrical industries apply, Volkswagen AG has its own in-house collective bargaining agreement. However, the wages under VW’s in-house collective bargaining agreement are closely aligned with those in the metal and electrical industries and are comparable in level to those of other automakers.
The demands for collective bargaining are drawn up by the elected bargaining committees of IG Metall, whose members are largely shop stewards from the plants—including at Volkswagen. The negotiations are then conducted by a smaller negotiating committee formed from within the bargaining committee, under the leadership of the IG Metall district of Lower Saxony-Saxony-Anhalt.
