It sounds like a real dream job: transformation pilot. Who doesn’t want to be like that? With the prospect of this great title, a major campaign is attracting VW employees to the IG Metall building in Wolfsburg on Wednesday evening at 7 p.m. “We want to have a say in what, how and where is produced,” is what is promised on a website, but also on flyers that were distributed at the VW factory gate and landed in Wolfsburg mailboxes. The initiators are not short of ideas: instead of cars, “products such as buses, trains and cargo bikes” are to be developed and produced in the VW main plant. At the end of the whole thing there is the socialization of the entire group, VW as common property. “The work in the hands of all of us — by all for all” is the slogan.
The crux of the matter: IG Metall, traditionally a power in the VW group, knows nothing about the socialization plans. On the contrary: the union is currently considering taking legal action against the authors of the campaign. Above all, the union does not want to put up with fake quotes from IG Metall officials and a false imprint on the website. For example, the second chairman of IG Metall, Christiane Benner, put the following quote into his mouth: “We must remain open to revolutionary moments in which certain things can be done at once”. Nevertheless, the campaign is still online.
From a company in Canada, the author’s trail leads to the Seychelles
It is not yet known who is behind all this. IG Metall suspects that the inventors of the fake campaign came from the environment of climate activists. First attempts to identify the originator of the website, which calls itself “Our work – Our work”, were unsuccessful, according to a union spokesman. From a company in Canada, the trail led to the Seychelles, he says. That the climate activists are really sitting there on an island and are driving the restructuring of the car company – rather unlikely.
Will buses and trains be built here soon?
(Photo: Jens Wolf/dpa)
According to IG Metall, one is always ready to discuss transformation and climate change constructively. In this case, however, the limits of a creative protest have been exceeded.
As for Volkswagen, the proposals are quite far from reality. Because VW is already finding it difficult enough to switch from combustion engines to electric cars. The demand for the Stromers from Wolfsburg is currently rather modest. There is also an internal “performance program” at the VW brand, which is intended to save billions of euros in the coming years. Would the performance be better with trams? As a precaution, IG Metall will be checking in on Wednesday evening at 7 p.m. in the IG Metall building to see how many transformation pilots are flying in there.