Germany: IG-Metall and VW OTLG, a Volkswagen subsidiary, strike decisive collective agreement in auto crafts

Whereas the auto trade and repair business is suffering from a major erosion of the collective agreements system, the IG-Metall metalworkers’ union announced, on March 18, that it signed a very important collective agreement with VW Original Teile Logistik (OTLG).  The union claims this agreement contains a series of improvements for the company’s 2,800 workers across 7 sites in Germany, notably in terms of work-life balance or part-time work at the end of the career.  It also sends a “strong signal” to the automotive crafts industry, showing that it is possible to sign flexible and innovative agreements that create “attractive working conditions” for employees.
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Same conditions for all. After bargaining for a year, the IG-Metall reached, on March 17, a “supplementary” collective agreement (Ergänzungstarifvertrag) with VW OTLG, a Volkswagen subsidiary that provides spare and original parts for about 2,800 Volkswagen and Audi maintenance partners throughout the country. Covering the company’s 2,800 workers in its 7 German sites, the deal complements the regional collective agreements in force in the auto crafts industry. “Until now, VW OTLG...

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