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VW Wolfsburg may switch to a four-day work week in 2027, according to the workers' council

Daniela Cavallo, the head of the Wolfsburg works council, told employees on Tuesday that Volkswagen's restructuring its Wolfsburg factory from 2027 in order to allow for EV production only could lead to a temporary four day working week.

Cavallo was a key figure in negotiations last year with management over cost reductions. He said that unions had agreed on a minimum capacity utilization for the transition period. However, he urged workers to work extra shifts to compensate for the possibility of reduced working hours in the future.

Cavallo stated that a four-day work week was not unreasonable from 2027.

Volkswagen's agreement with unions to reduce costs in Germany last December included the production of the combustion engines Golf from Wolfsburg, Germany to Mexico by 2027. This prompted concern from some employees of the company's headquarters about the future of the factory.

Cavallo tried to assure the workers that the future of the plant was in better hands by announcing plans to produce an electric Golf as well as the successor to its T-Roc small SUV, before the end of this decade. He cited the decline in demand for VW's iconic combustion engine car.

A graph created by the Wolfsburg works council, and seen by, showed that golf production has dropped from more than a million cars in 2015 to less than 300,000 by 2024. This year, only 250,000 vehicles are expected.

The Golf must move to Mexico. Sooner or later. Cavallo, in comments posted on the intranet of the company, said that if we don't, we will be at the bottom end of the statistics I showed.

(source: Reuters)