About 7,000 Volkswagen workers, represented by the IG Metall industrial union, walked off the job on Tuesday to put pressure on management over current contract negotiations. As part of a drive to cut labor costs by 30 percent over the next seven years, Volkswagen is seeking a two-year wage freeze for its employees. The union is seeking job guarantees and a wage increase of 4 percent annually. A union leader representing Volkswagen workers said that large-scale short warning strikes would be launched in November if the two sides couldn't come to a deal.
See "7, 000 Volkswagen Workers Stage Walk Off", The New York Times, October 25, 2004