Strikers Shut Down VW Mexico Plant

We're not there yet, but it appears that the civil war we've seen in South Korea at SsangYong's production facility is a source of inspiration for unsatisfied workers around the world. Volkswagen's workers in Mexico went on strike yesterday after negotiations over a wage increase failed. So they decided to stop all activities and shout slogans aimed at the board management. Banners painted in red and black were hanged at every entrances to the factory in Puebla, Reuters wrote.

Obviously, production was stopped immediately but Volkswagen says the US operations won't be affected by the strike. The production facility was in charge of building the New Beetle and Jetta for both the Mexican and the US markets.

According to the aforementioned source, it all started when, in spite of the economic recession that reduced output by 25 percent last month, workers demanded a 3 percent wage increase. After a series of talks, Volkswagen revealed it can only offer 1 percent and a bonus of 5,500 peso ($425). Workers did not agree so here they are, protesting against board's decision right in front of the plant.

But management officials are not worried at all. They say the US inventories are still enough to meet local demand, even if the Mexican plant halts production for a small period of time. Furthermore, a new round of negotiations is expected to take place on Thursday when the two sides are very likely to reach an agreement.

Meanwhile, workers are still in the streets, asking for they rights. This is exactly how the SsangYong civil war started back in May...