Audi Brussels scraps 145 temps’ contracts as battery supplier can’t keep up
Management at the Audi Brussels car plant in the Brussels municipality of Vorst has told the unions at the factory that it the contracts of 145 temps will be terminated in the coming days and weeks. Audi electrically-powered e-tron car is built at the Brussels factory. Just before the end of last year production capacity for the e-tron was increased and extra staff recruited and trained to build the vehicle.
However, the success of electrically powered cars made by other manufacturers means that company that makes the batteries for the e-tron and a number of other electrically-powered cars is unable to keep pace with demand.
Patrick Debast of the Christian trade union ACV told VRT News that “Management have had to revise their production programme. We had a meeting about this with management yesterday”.
"The issue stems from a shortage of modules needed to assemble the batteries. The battery supplier is unable to deliver a large number of the batteries that have been ordered. This is despite us having made provision for production capacity to be increased this year as there is more demand for electrically-powered cars. However, as other manufactures are also making more electrically-powered cars, the supplier is unable to deliver more any more than 4,000 batteries”.
If no solution at all is found even more temps could be laid off. In the worst case scenario as many as 250 people could find themselves without work. All of those that are laid off will remain on a list and will be re-call by Audi as and when there is work for them. A meeting is planned for Wednesday at which the unions will ask management for a job security guarantee until 2025.