Around 300 employees of the car factory and suppliers gathered at the Audi Brussels factory in Vorst on Thursday afternoon. The protesters occupied the Brits Tweedelegerlaan in Vorst. The police are on site to divert traffic.
The protest was called for by the staff via social media. It is not an initiative of the unions, but they are present.
Audi announced Tuesday a restructuring at the Brussels factory where the Q8 e-tron rolls off the production line. Production of the Q8 e-tron is set to end as early as 2025, due to “a global decline in customer orders in the electric upper class segment”, the Q8 class. The factory may then be closed. Thousands of jobs are at risk.
Economic unemployment
At the moment, there is no work in Vorst. There is economic unemployment, followed by the annual holiday. The factory is also closed. On 20 August, work would normally resume. The unions are planning a staff meeting then. They have proposed to the management to meet for the first time on 22 August in the context of the Renault law.