- Title: GERMANY: AUTO ENGINEERS CONTINUE STRIKE OVER WORKING HOURS.
- Date: 23rd June 2003
- Summary: (U4) BRANDENBURG, GERMANY (JUNE 23, 2003) (REUTERS) 1. GV/CU: WORKERS OUTSIDE ZF PLANT IN EASTERN GERMAN CITY OF BRANDENBURG WHERE GEAR BOXES FOR BMW CARS ARE PRODUCED; SIGN (2 SHOTS) 0.11 2. TV/PAN/CU: ENGINEERING UNION WORKERS WITH IG METALL FLAGS WHISTLING AS EMPLOYEES WILLING TO WORK ENTER PLANT; WORKERS ON STRIKE WAVING FLAGS AND WHISTLING (2 SHOTS) 0-.32 3. LV/GV/CU/MV: UNION REPRESENTATIVE ADDRESSING WORKERS ON STRIKE, PAN TO APPLAUDING CROWD; WORKERS ON STRIKE LISTENING (5 SHOTS) 0.54 (U4) DRESDEN, GERMANY (JUNE 23, 2003) (REUTERS) 4. MCU: SOUNDBITE (German) ULRICH JENSCH, VW EMPLOYEE SAYING: "We agree with our colleagues from western Germany who supported us: this fight is not just about the east (of Germany) but it also addresses the issue whether or not to abolish the 35-hour week in western Germany. It is right that our colleagues support us and we fight this together so that they don't manage not to introduce the 35-hour work week." 1.27 5. MV: BALLOONS ON GATE, MAN CLOSING GATE, PULLOUT TO SIGN SAYING: "This business is on strike" 1.40 6. VARIOUS: BANNERS; VW WORKERS SEATED OUTSIDE PLANT; CLOSEUP WOMAN SITTING OUTSIDE PLANT; PULLOUT FROM CAR CHASSIS INSIDE PLANT TO PLACARD READING "THIS PLANT IS ON STRIKE" (6 SHOTS) 2.12 (U4)(FRANKFURT, GERMANY (JUNE 23, 2003) (REUTERS) 7. GV: EXTERIOR HEADQUARTERS OF GERMAN AUTOS INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION (VDA) IN FRANKFURT 2.16 8. GV/CU: VDA PRESIDENT BERND GOTTSCHALK SITTING DOWN FOR NEWS CONFERENCE; CAMERAMAN FILMING (2 SHOTS) 2.29 9. MCU: SOUNDBITE (German) BERND GOTTSCHALK, VDA PRESIDENT SAYING: "Since the German auto industry has a global focus this strike also damages the international reputation of the new German states (eastern Germany). The impact will therefore be far greater than can be calculated." 2.42 10. GV: NEWS CONFERENCE 2.47 Initials Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved
- Embargoed: 8th July 2003 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: BRANDENBURG & DRESDEN & FRANKFURT, GERMANY
- Country: Germany
- Reuters ID: LVACXMFYS7C77KKUYEGDHXQKX8NY
- Story Text: Engineering union workers in eastern Germany have
continued strike actions in a dispute over working hours as
the German autos industry association (VDA) warned eastern
Germany's reputation among investors could be damaged.
The strikes on Monday (June 23) entered their
fourth week and the engineering union IG Metall called on
9,000 workers to down tools at nine factories in the eastern
states of Berlin, Brandenburg and Saxony.
But IG Metall strike leader Hasso Duevel said the fact the
union had not decided to extend the strikes signalled a desire
to reach a deal.
According to IG Metalls vice-president Juergen Peters, the
union was ready to consider cutting the working week from 38
to 35 hours in stages and at varying speeds depending on the
economic position of individual plants.
Carmaker BMW said the strike had stopped production at its
Munich factory, where it builds 800 of its 3-Series cars per
day and at Regensburg, where it makes 850 of the mid-sized
cars.
About 10,000 workers were affected.
Germanys VDA auto industry association said the daily
production loss due to strikes was 1,370 vehicles in eastern
Germany and 1,800 vehicles in the west. VDA President Bernd
Gottshalk said the strike and the demand for shorter hours
risked undermining eastern Germanys competitive advantages.
"Since the German auto industry has a global focus this
strike also damages the international reputation of the new
German states (eastern Germany). The impact will therefore be
far greater than can be calculated", he told a news conference
in Frankfurt.
The German car industry accounts for 10 percent of total
industrial output and hundreds of thousands of jobs.
Unemployment in the former east is about 20 percent. BMW
has said that because of the strike it may reconsider the
scale of an investment in the eastern city of Leipzig, where
it is building a new factory which was due to create 5,500
jobs.
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