Temporary Employment Contracts May Not Be Renewed
Volkswagen has been forced to reduce planned employment and adjust shift work at its all-electric vehicle production facility in Zwickau, Germany, due to “market conditions”.
Zwickau: Volkswagen's Electric Vehicle Base
The factory in Zwickau stands out as the Volkswagen Group's largest electric vehicle facility in Europe, with an annual production capacity of 300.000 vehicles. Fully electric vehicles such as the VW ID3, Audi Q4 e-tron and Cupra Born are produced here, and bodies are also produced for Bentley and Lamborghini.
Employment Plans Are Changing
Volkswagen had planned to keep 540 staff hired on limited-term contracts in recent years on a permanent basis, but the company says it can no longer do so for 269 of those staff.
A company spokesman said: “Volkswagen continues to pursue the path towards electromobility… but given current market conditions, zam"We cannot extend 12 of the 269-month temporary employment contracts that will expire at the moment," he said.
Tough Competition and Market Conditions
VW is struggling to cope with Tesla's global dominance, especially in selling electric vehicles produced in Germany. As economic growth remained low and energy, living and borrowing costs increased, the demand for ID series electric vehicles decreased.
Chinese Production and European Market
To stay competitive, Volkswagen, like other automakers such as Tesla and BMW, prefers to source production from China to export cheap products to Europe. Volkswagen's Cupra brand has made plans to produce the Tavascan SUV in China, and this model will use hardware and software platforms similar to the ID series. The Tavascan SUV is planned to be introduced to the European market in 2024.
Chinese Production and Uncertainty in Europe
The competitive landscape in Europe for Chinese-made vehicles remains unclear as the European Union has begun examining Chinese electric vehicle incentives to prevent cheap imports.
