Employees force Opel to make a concession

After months of deadlock Opel has signed an agreement with its German Central Works Council that is generally being viewed as an important concession of Opel.  The hierarchical structure of the car manufacturer has been changed in a way that was inconceivable to General Motors, the parent company. However, it is still unsure if this plan will be realised.

GM Europe, which is composed of Opel and Vauxhall, has been losing millions for years.  According to the trade unions and the Works Councils this is because the US parent company wants to be very involved with too little knowledge of things. That is why cars are being produced that European consumers do not really like.

Under the leadership of the European Works Council the workers on the different sites have held the same position for months: they want to contribute to a bail-out/rescue plan financially, but only if the authorities pay as well.  Other important conditions are that workers would get increased participation and GM Europe would have to adjust structurally in return for that money.  But up to now the US management has regarded worker participation to be like the 'Devil before a tub of Holy water', as was written in the financial press.

The Friday before Whit Sunday Nick Reilly, the Opel boss and Klaus Franz, the Chairman of the German Works Council, who is also the Chairman of the EWC, made known that it would happen anyway.  In the years to come GM is to scrap 8,300 of the 48,000 jobs in Europe.  In order to improve the company’s balance in the future German workers are going to contribute EUR 177 million, assuming that workers elsewhere will top up the amount up to EUR 265 million.  German workers are willing to give up their salary increase, part of their leave and bank holiday pay, they had agreed upon previously.  The total amount, EUR 1 billion in the next 4 years will be placed in an independent fund during that time.  If other commitments are not met, then the money and the interest on it will be given back to the workers.  In return for the workers’ contribution GM in going to invest EUR 11 billion in new models, among which a model that is smaller than the Corsa.  What is more: the German Opel company will be switched from a GmbH (“Ltd”) to an AG (“plc”).   

In Germany, an AG is different from a GmbH in that the management is not obliged to do what the shareholders (in this case, GM) want.  Decisions are subject to a supervisory board, and half of the seats on that supervisory board are occupied by German worker representatives in accordance with German law. 

GM request the European authorities for an aid of total of 1.8 billion Euro, of which 1.3 billion would have to be paid by the German government. 

However on Wednesday 6^th of June 2010 the German government rejected General Motors' request for aid for its Opel unit, saying the U.S. automaker had enough funds to pull its subsidiary through. This is a shock for the employees:"The economy minister is leaving the Opel employees out in the rain — against his better knowledge and against the interest of the German sites," Klaus Franz said in a statement.

Franz warned for the closure of at least two Opel plants and has announced a protest manifestation in front of the Frankfurt stock exchange.

It is curtains for the Antwerp site in December, in spite of the agreement reached. The only thing that the unions and politicians can do now is get new investors interested in the plant.

Rudy Kennes, the Chairman of the Works Council at Opel Antwerpen, recently stated in OR-Informatie that if it would not have been for the European Works Council, his production plant would have been closed down a long time ago.