Plant manager Ingolf Kothe took part in the “My time out” program that Volkswagen AG has just introduced. With the help of this model, he has just graduated as an industrial foreman.
“I have been working in the machining technology department at the Volkswagen plant in Braunschweig for ten years. It was thanks to my grandfather that I finally made it through to become my industrial foreman. He always warned me how important further training is, especially at a young age.
It was just difficult to reconcile that with work: I work in shifts and have an hour to drive to the plant. Doing further training on the side would not have been possible for me. And at the moment I can’t afford four months of unpaid leave.
It was therefore very fitting that Volkswagen employees have been able to easily take time off since last May. I asked about it immediately, my boss agreed – and two months later I started training. During the time off, I get 75 percent of my basic salary. After that, I earn a little less for almost a year to make up for that.
I’m doing a compact course that is pretty tight. It doesn’t work without studying on the weekend. After two weeks we got the trainer license. You need it to be admitted to the master craftsman examination. Maths suits me, that’s why I like the cost-performance calculation best of the content. Other subjects are, for example, personnel management and organization. I really enjoyed learning! It was good to be out of shift work and see something else.
Now the course is almost over: the last exam is on Tuesday, after that I have two weeks of vacation, and on November 17th the factory starts again. In the future, I will not only work on the system, but also in the office. In the medium term, I would like to manage entire shifts. Now I’ll probably get a project in which I can try out what I’ve learned. “