Photo: Volkswagen AG
The Ukraine conflict has created a jobs crisis in Russia, and more and more companies flee the country as Western sanctions due to the war take hold. Now Volkswagen has announced it is offering a series of compensations to employees who voluntarily quit their jobs at the Nizhny Novgorod car assembly plant.
The factory in question, located in Nizhny Novgorod, Russia, is owned by the GAZ Group, the leading vehicle manufacturer in the country with 18 manufacturing facilities in eight regions of Russia. Oleg Deripaska, one of its co-owners, has been placed under sanctions by Western countries.
And although, initially, a temporary exemption allowed operations to continue at the factory, this was not extended. As a result, Volkswagen announced in March that production at both Kaluga and Nizhny Novgorod plants would be suspended until further notice. At the same time, vehicle exports to Russia stopped effective immediately.
Now, a spokesperson for the German automaker has said that the company is offering financial compensation and medical insurance until the end of 2022 to employees who voluntarily resign from their jobs at the plant. The offer was available to the around 200 people working at the Nizhny Novgorod plant.
Union sources were cited as saying that workers who agreed to quit and accepted the company’s offer before June 17 would receive six months’ pay.
Volkswagen is the direct owner of the Kaluga plant, where it employs around 4,200 workers, but in the case of the Nizhny Novgorod factory, the automaker has a contractual agreement with GAZ Group to assemble some vehicle models there. Now, its partnership with GAZ Group has come to an end.
In a statement he made yesterday, Russia’s President Vladimir Putin said foreign companies that had left Russia would regret their decision.
“In today's conditions, when someone jumped off somewhere, left, chose to stop some activity here, they will regret it,” he said. “They will regret it, not because we threaten anyone. They will regret it because Russia is a country with great potential, really.”
And although, initially, a temporary exemption allowed operations to continue at the factory, this was not extended. As a result, Volkswagen announced in March that production at both Kaluga and Nizhny Novgorod plants would be suspended until further notice. At the same time, vehicle exports to Russia stopped effective immediately.
Now, a spokesperson for the German automaker has said that the company is offering financial compensation and medical insurance until the end of 2022 to employees who voluntarily resign from their jobs at the plant. The offer was available to the around 200 people working at the Nizhny Novgorod plant.
Union sources were cited as saying that workers who agreed to quit and accepted the company’s offer before June 17 would receive six months’ pay.
Volkswagen is the direct owner of the Kaluga plant, where it employs around 4,200 workers, but in the case of the Nizhny Novgorod factory, the automaker has a contractual agreement with GAZ Group to assemble some vehicle models there. Now, its partnership with GAZ Group has come to an end.
In a statement he made yesterday, Russia’s President Vladimir Putin said foreign companies that had left Russia would regret their decision.
“In today's conditions, when someone jumped off somewhere, left, chose to stop some activity here, they will regret it,” he said. “They will regret it, not because we threaten anyone. They will regret it because Russia is a country with great potential, really.”
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