Bavarian Auto Parts Plant Wins Up to €250,000 Severance After Eight-Day Strike

A bitter labour conflict at the Mahle automotive components site in Neustadt an der Donau has ended with a social tariff agreement that awards severance payments of up to €250,000 per worker. IG Metall members voted in favour of the deal in early June, confirming the plant’s closure for the first quarter of 2027.

The package follows an eight-day strike. Beyond individual payouts, the accord includes a €3.25 million member bonus, a hardship fund, and a transfer company to help affected staff find new jobs. Mahle management criticised the strike as disproportionate and warned the dispute risked undermining the company’s competitiveness.

Salzgitter: No Plant Closure, but Heavy Headwinds

At a works assembly on 4 June 2026, works council chief Björn Harmening pushed back against rumours that Salzgitter’s steel plant might close. He pointed to agreements reached in 2024 that are meant to safeguard the site. However, the works council acknowledged intense pressure from several directions: US tariffs on steel, sluggish demand in China, and higher material costs.

The plant’s long-term strategic asset, according to the council, is the decision to locate PowerCo’s headquarters in Salzgitter—a move that should strengthen the site’s position in electric-vehicle battery production. The works council also took a firm stance against raising the retirement age to 70.

Saarland’s Green Steel Ambition in Limbo

Further west, the Saarland steel industry faces a potential crisis. Works councils at Saarstahl and Dillinger Hütte, together with IG Metall, have called for a protest day in Völklingen on 12 June 2026.

The trigger is a €4.3 billion project to produce green steel, originally slated for completion by 2029. Workers now see the entire future of the region’s steel production at risk, citing uncertainty over pending EU-level decisions on future CO? costs. Without clarity, the investment may be scrapped.

Vietnam: 10 Million Members, a Shorter Work Week, and More Holidays

On the international front, Vietnam’s General Confederation of Labour (VGCL) opened its 14th congress in Hanoi on 3 June 2026. Some 780 delegates representing nearly 10 million union members will elect a new executive committee and presidium for a term running until 2031.

A key demand in talks with the government is reducing the official weekly working hours to between 40 and 44 hours and introducing additional public holidays. The union argues that shorter hours would improve both productivity and worker well-being.

Election Integrity Questioned at Bus Company NVG

Transparency in workplace democracy came under scrutiny when allegations surfaced in early June 2026 that the works council election at bus operator NVG—conducted back in 2022—may have been manipulated. The case underlines the importance of clean electoral processes within co-determination bodies, labour representatives said.

Logistics and Skills: New Centre Opens, Young Mechanics Qualify

On a more upbeat note, logistics provider Fiege celebrated the topping-out ceremony for a new distribution centre in Hessisch Lichtenau on 2 June 2026. The facility spans more than 50,000 square metres, will be equipped with photovoltaic panels and heat pumps, and is due to become operational in autumn 2026.

In the skilled trades, over 50 trainees in Wuppertal received their automotive-mechanic journeyman certificates at the end of March 2026. For the first time, the cohort also included graduates of the “Fachpraktiker” programme—a specialised training pathway for workers with learning disabilities—who completed their apprenticeships successfully.

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