Volkswagen Group management has decided to terminate most collective agreements with German trade unions by the end of this year. The wage agreement with German unionists will also be reviewed. With this move, management aims to gain “freer rein to implement cost-cutting measures”.
The Trade Union Association of Bohemia, Moravia & Silesia (OS ČMS) aligns itself with the statement made by Thorsten Gröger of the IG Metall union, who called this “a dirty foul against employees and another shameless attempt to reach into workers’ pockets”.
OS ČMS views the decision to terminate union agreements within the Volkswagen Group as a direct attack on the Group’s employees. This move—accompanied by the gradual elimination of nearly 100,000 jobs—is primarily intended to stabilize competitiveness and profits, facilitating their redistribution to private owners at the expense of employee wage and social policies. It once again demonstrates that labour costs are the first area where the Group’s owners seek savings—and thereby shift the burden of responsibility for flawed strategic decisions. This is a concrete manifestation of a form of capitalism in which the worker and employee are relegated to the margins of concern.
That’s why the OS ČMS stands in solidarity with the Volkswagen Group’s both workers and other employees, including those at the Škoda joint-stock comp. plant in Czech Republic, which may also be affected by the cuts. We fully support your decision to defend your trade union and employee rights and agreements by all means, including strikes.
Workers and employees must not bear the cost of “lost” profits resulting from the poor strategy of the group’s owners! We stand with the workers and other employees of the Volkswagen Group in their struggle!
In Prague, Czech Republic, October 5, 2026.
Trade Union Association of Bohemia, Moravia, and Silesia