Where is the new client?
VDL Nedcar officially still has no new client for when the BMW Group disappears next year. Trade union FNV states that there is growing unrest among employees as a result, although VDL Nedcar itself says that good news has recently been shared.
Because a new client for VDL Nedcar is delayed, the unrest among the 4,200 employees is increasing. FNV trade union director Ron Peters notices this, who also told his story on Sunday 1Limburg. He has recently received many calls and messages from concerned staff. “The end of the factory is in sight, but VDL Nedcar refuses to sit down with us,” sighs Peters, who is now threatening a lawsuit on behalf of five trade unions. “More and more people seem to be looking for other work, especially now that the labor market for the metal sector in Limburg booming “, says Peters. The staff seems to be preparing for a possible closure of the car factory. “The number of messages we received between Christmas and New Year’s Eve swelled to dozens. That’s really unusual.”
Meanwhile, VDL Nedcar indicates that the staff must above all have confidence, says Peters. “But we’ve been waiting for a year now.” In that year, two potential clients passed in review. For example, the American Canoo wanted to build its cars in Limburg earlier, but that deal ended at the end of 2021. A possible deal with Rivian has also still not been finalized. The unions now want to break open the social plan for VDL NedCar employees. This should give the staff more certainty, should the factory close its doors anyway. “In the existing plan, we have agreed to sit down together when the end of the factory is in sight. But the management refuses to do so and continues to say that we must maintain confidence,” says Peters. Five unions, three Dutch and two Belgian, now want to increase the pressure. “This week we will definitively declare a lawsuit and then we will have to see when it occurs,” says the union official.
A spokesman for VDL NedCar says that the company is not yet aware of the unrest. Around Christmas, the staff was told a state of affairs, although the spokesman does not want to say anything about the content. “We keep it internal.” That message would have been received with applause. “We have more than 4,000 colleagues here, so it is difficult to respond to unrest, which may be more prevalent in some than in others,” said the spokesman. As for people who have started looking for other work, the spokesperson points to the current tightness on the labor market. “In any organization, people go and people come.” He does emphasize, however, that employees are included in the developments as much as possible. “Employees are informed about this at regular intervals. They also understand that negotiations are subject to secrecy, so that not everything can be shared.”
The contract with the BMW Group runs until March 1, 2024. VDL Nedcar now still builds Mini models and also the BMW X1. Last summer, the millionth car that VDL Nedcar built for BMW left the production line. The BMW Group has paid VDL Nedcar a compensation of no less than €49 million for the early termination of the production contract.
– Thanks for information from Autoweek.nl