Big trouble at Audi in Győr - has the quiet downsizing started?
More than a thousand workers have been transferred to lower-paid jobs at Audi in Győr - with up to HUF 400,000 lower gross wages. According to a source at Átlátszó, the current workforce of around 12,000 at the Győr plant is to be reduced to less than 10,000. According to a statement from Audi Hungária, no mass redundancies are currently planned.
According to Átlátszó, although the Audi car factory in Győr is still operating at full capacity, the older engine plant, which has been in operation since 1994, is facing serious problems. The under-utilisation here means that far fewer staff are needed, but under the company's previous internal agreement, direct redundancies are not possible - someone's employment is only terminated if they do not accept the other job on offer. In practice, this means that workers at the engine plant are offered a job at the car factory. Michael Breme, managing director of Audi Hungária, said in the spring that more and more flexibility was expected from employees.
The union says it is not aware of any direct layoffs, but opposes job and wage changes. In several cases, the employer has taken the option of providing the employee with a new employment contract with a changed job title and basic salary. Basic wage reductions of more than half the minimum wage have also occurred,
.A source told the paper that so far, nearly a thousand workers at the engine factory have been subjected to this solution, with their pay being cut significantly. While the average wage of engine factory workers is around 1.2 million forints gross, it is only 800-850 thousand forints gross at the car factory
.The conditions for continued employment are not uniform: while in the engine plant workers used to do more flexible, professional work, in the vehicle plant they mostly have to do three-shift, monotonous strip work. The company did not provide concrete figures on the wage differences, but the employer says that the different salaries can cause wage tension, which is why a uniform structure is being developed.
Audi Hungária said in a statement that it is continuously working to reduce costs and optimise its organisational structure. Production is being adjusted to current market demand and the aim is to ensure the continued employment of a large proportion of employees through flexible redeployment.
They added that their collective agreement provides for above-average wages and that no mass layoffs are currently planned
.A source said, however, that the current workforce of around 12,000 at the Győr plant would be reduced to below 10,000.
This is in line with Volkswagen's announcement at the end of May that it plans to cut 35,000 jobs at group level by 2030.
In addition to the engine plant, the technical development division could also be affected by the restructuring. Development engineers are currently facing a shortage of work, with several projects being relocated from Germany. This area is expected to be restructured due to the electromobility transition. According to the union, new technical solutions require different competences, so several workers have been offered other positions.
Audi says new orders are coming in and this will require retraining of some of its staff. However, German automotive expert Ferdinand Dudenhöffer says future electric motor development will take place in China rather than Europe - and with that, the possibility of development jobs being moved is not ruled out.
Contacted on the matter, Bence Pintér, mayor of Győr, said the decisions of the city's largest employer were understandably of public interest. He stressed that the municipality must be prepared for uncertain times, because if there are problems, they could put a strain on the social care system - the city's aim is to provide more resources to cover these tasks.
image: pixabay.hu
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