German politicians from both major parties have called for Volkswagen’s main union, IG Metall, to be given a right of veto over major business decisions.
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The president of Lower Saxony, Christian Wulff, a member of the Christian Democrat (CDP) party whose state is a major shareholder in Volkswagen, and economic spokesman for the socialist party (SPD), Rainer Wend, made their case in the Frankfurter Allgememeine Sonntagszeitung newspaper at the weekend. They said that the right of veto is needed in the wake of the overturn of the so-called ‘Volkswagen Law’ by the European Court of Justice last week.
The court ruled that the law does not comply with European competition laws because it is a barrier to the free movement of capital and, in particular, that it give a special role to the state of Lower Saxony. The judges did not have a problem with the fact that certain issues can only be passed if they have the support of two-thirds of the supervisory board or the approval of the employees.
German legislators are expected to start writing a new Volkswagen Law that will help protect Germany as a business location. The union could be given a right of veto within that law.
Meanwhile Volkswagen’s largest shareholder, Porsche, is hoping to make Volkswagen into a ‘normal’ company. Workers’ representatives are lobbying Porsche management to ensure that, if Porsche does become a majority shareholder, workers will still have a role in major decisions such as where future models will be produced.
