Audi seeks to reopen job agreement, unsettling workers

Audi wants to renegotiate a labor agreement reached 18 months ago, raising uncertainty for employees, BR reported. The company says conditions have worsened enough to invoke a clause allowing early talks on working conditions and costs during economic hardship.

Audi chief executive Gernot Döllner announced the move at a works meeting in Neckarsulm. The agreement, signed in March 2025, rules out compulsory redundancies through Dec. 31, 2033, and protects monthly collectively agreed pay and allowances. It also provides for 7,500 jobs to be cut by 2029 through socially responsible measures such as phased retirement.

The works council will first assess whether the conditions for invoking the clause have been met. The Neckarsulm works council says the protection against compulsory redundancies should not be affected, though other cost-cutting measures could be discussed if the requirements are met.

The proposed renegotiation could also affect about 40,000 employees at Audi’s Ingolstadt plant, BR said. The broadcaster planned to discuss the potential impact in a live report from Ingolstadt at 4 p.m. on Friday.