The strike in Volskwagen Slovakia began. (source: SME)
A few thousand employees of the Bratislava-based carmaker Volkswagen Slovakia (VW SK) gathered in front of the factory on June 20 at 6:00 to support the strike, the first of its kind to take place at the plant. Its organisers are asking for higher salaries and other bonuses for employees.
The representatives of trade unions are ready to meet the company’s management to discuss the situation.
“We feel sorry about VW management still not offering us a meeting,” the Modern Trade Unions (MOV) organisation stated shortly before noon, as quoted by the SITA newswire.
The employees are ready to continue striking till the end of this week and into next week if necessary, MOV added.
The strike has paralysed the production of the Bratislava-based plant, with the only exception being the assembly of New Small Family vehicles. The plants in Martin and Stupava are operating without disruptions, VW SK informed.
Meanwhile, the trade unions are preparing for the arrival of the afternoon shift at 14:00. Further production at the carmaker depends on the number of people refusing to start work during this shift, the Sme daily reported on its website.
The trade unions declared the strike after disagreements with the carmaker’s management on salary increases. While the unions asked for a 16-percent raise, the management offered to increase salaries by 8.9 percent.
