According to reports, a joint position document seen by the media on October 14 reveals that four German states housing Volkswagen operations are working together to ensure that the struggling automaker does not close any of its factories in Germany.
The relevant departments from Lower Saxony, Saxony, Hesse, and Berlin stated that their primary goal is to fully protect all Volkswagen sites.
In a document signed on October 10, the states declared, "This means there will be no competition among the factories." The document also noted, "The economic departments of the federal states will unite and work closely together."
These four states also oppose large-scale layoffs at the expense of employee interests and stated that renewed long-term job security contracts should ensure positions and retain skilled workers.
Volkswagen has been facing deepening troubles recently, with news of plant closures-unprecedented in Germany-leading to tensions with the powerful IG Metall union, which represents 130,000 employees of the Volkswagen brand in Germany.
IG Metall is currently negotiating a new labor agreement with Volkswagen after the group terminated an agreement last month that had protected jobs at six factories in western Germany since the mid-1990s.
