The automotive industry Volkswagen disassociated himself from 300 personas from its General Pacheco factory in the last four months, according to a group of former workers from this plant, one of the two that the German automaker has in the country.
From the company They confirmed both the dismissals and the number which brings the staff of 5,000 employees that Volkswagen Argentina had at the beginning of 2024 was reduced to 4,700.
The reason for this downsizing, according to the company, was “adapt the structure of our plants to the new situation of the local and export market to ensure the sustainability of the company and the people who work in it.”
The union where Volkswagen workers are registered is Smata. But the dismissals were not denounced by the union headed by the Peronist Ricardo Pignanelli but from a group called “Dismissed Volkswagen Workers Fighting for Reinstatement.”
“What had begun with a “process of reorganizing” production at the expense of its employees accepting the withdrawals -in-“volunteers” ended in covert layoffs for those who decided to keep their source of employment as employees,” the group said.
The company admitted the dismissals, They denied that it was through layoffs.
“The company maintains a fluid dialogue with workers’ representatives “to jointly develop and implement the necessary tools to cope with the situation facing the industry, always taking care of the well-being of workers,” said a statement from Volkswagen. It added: “VWA Argentina ensures the continued operation of its plants and once again renews the commitment it has had with the country for 44 years.”
Since the beginning of the year, the automotive industry has had plant shutdowns that have lasted for months in some cases, in a context of sharp drops in sales in the domestic market (-19% in the first seven months of the year) and above all a drastic drop in factory production with a drop of 24% in the first seven months of the year.
In the case of Volkswagen, the Pacheco plant had the worst part with the plant stop throughout January and February, due to both the drop in demand and the lack of parts that had been dragging on since the previous year. Added to this situation was the discontinuation of production of the Amarok pick-up, to make way for the new version that was launched this month.
The Córdoba plant, on the other hand, did not have any staff reductions. Gearboxes are produced there and in recent months there have also been two new investments, for a new truck assembly plant and an assembly line for Ducati motorcycles.
Other automakers that had staff reductions this year are: Toyota (opened a voluntary retreat for 400 of the 8,000 employees at its factory in Zárate) and Renaultwhich did not renew the contracts of 270 temporary workers at its plant in Córdoba.