Ford threat at Ford Cologne: Decision on the future of jobs!

Ford threat at Ford Cologne: Decision on the future of jobs!

The conflict at the Cologne car manufacturer Ford has reached a new escalation level. Like ksta.de , the coordination of the workforce started on Monday, which will continue until Wednesday. The votes are counted on Thursday. With a consent of 75 percent, both temporary and permanent strikes are possible.

Benjamin Gruschka, the overall head of the company, is optimistic and expects a positive result, while he speaks of high motivation and cohesion among the employees. The pressure on management is to be increased by the threat of strikes, especially after several warning strikes in the past few weeks and the combative mood at the works meeting.

background of the conflict

The background of this conflict is alarming. Ford is planning the deletion of 2900 of the current 11,500 jobs at the Cologne location by the end of 2027. While operational terminations are contractually excluded by 2032, the US mother company has overturned its patronage declaration, which has so far covered losses. These developments have brought more than just explosives into the negotiations between the works council and the management, which have been discussing a social collective agreement in particular since March 27th.

The management of Ford Germany under Marcus Wassenberg rejects the required social collective agreements with high severance payments by the end of 2033. Instead, management requires the task of the company -related protection against dismissal, which is not willing to accept the works council. These developments are particularly worrying, since the last work of work only took place two years ago and the effects of which have not yet been completely overcome.

The reactions of the workforce and union

In this context, IG Metall calls for clarity about a sustainable future concept as well as about severance payments and operating conditions. The employee side criticizes management errors, which particularly affect electromobility and model policy. The lack of a sustainable future concept is also considered a serious failure.

The workforce has already paid a high price in the context of earlier degradation programs, known as “Ford Future”. The degree of organization in the auto industry, including Ford, is high, which has proven a increased increase in membership of ten percent at IG Metall since autumn.

With the impending possibility of a strike in the over 100-year history of Ford Germany, the Cologne location stands at a critical cross-country path that could have far-reaching consequences not only for the workforce, but also for the future of the entire production.