Daniela Cavallo, Chair of the Volkswagen Group's Works Council, strongly criticized the appearance of Audi Chairman Gerno Dollner at an election rally for US President Donald Trump.
Cavallo said in an internal interview, according to the German News Agency, “several minutes filled with racism, sexism, xenophobia, transphobia, and contempt for democracy, and then one of the group’s senior representatives goes up to the podium and actively participates in the election campaign.”
She added that everyone who listened to Trump's speech "and realized that Dollner had become an active part in this event should feel ashamed," according to what was reported by the German News Agency and Der Spiegel magazine.
Christiane Benner, head of the IG Metall union, denounced the appearance of Audi CEO Gerno Dollner, describing it as "politically unacceptable." She explained that the way Dollner presented himself and Audi in the United States was “embarrassing” and “unbecoming of Audi employees.”
Cavallo also directed sharp criticism at the entire Volkswagen Group board of directors, led by Chairman Oliver Blume. She said the board "allowed an extremely controversial political figure, who violates almost all of our company's values, to turn him into a puppet for her own propaganda show."
Cavallo added that the comparisons that quickly emerged between the incident and Volkswagen's history speak for themselves, warning that the matter represented "playing with fire."
It should be noted that Volkswagen was founded during the Nazi era and was used by Adolf Hitler's regime as a model company to showcase its achievements.
The first Audi factory in America
Trump suddenly announced the construction of an Audi factory in Perry, Georgia. Dollner then took to the podium and thanked the US President for his support.
The head of the Volkswagen subsidiary also holds a position on the group's board of directors in Wolfsburg, where Dollner is responsible for the Progressive Brand Group, which includes, in addition to Audi, luxury brands such as Bentley and Lamborghini, in addition to the motorcycle manufacturer Ducati.
Audi, which is headquartered in the German city of Ingolstadt, intends to produce 200,000 SUVs annually in Georgia. It is planned to pump investments worth four billion dollars, which will lead to the creation of 4,500 job opportunities.
Audi has set 2027 as the date for the start of construction work, while production is expected to begin in the early 2030s. This will be the first factory of the Volkswagen subsidiary, which specializes in luxury cars, in the United States.
Trump and Audi...an appearance that raises a storm
According to Cavallo, Dollner's appearance with Trump also contradicts Audi's internal guidelines. In the three months preceding the elections, it is prohibited to attend public events with politicians running for elections.
Cavallo explained that Dollner signed these principles only a few months ago, adding that what happened “certainly represents a clear violation.” Midterm congressional elections are scheduled for November 3.
On the other hand, the head of the Volkswagen Works Council looks more conservatively at plans to establish an Audi factory in the United States. Cavallo said this might make sense from a purely economic standpoint; The American market is “one of the largest and most profitable markets in the world, but Volkswagen’s share in it is still very small.”
She pointed out that Trump imposed high customs duties that cost the group billions, which supports the trend towards increasing production within the United States, but she said that after the Audi announcement, there are still many unanswered questions, such as whether there are customs facilities in return for the entire Volkswagen group.
She noted that it is not clear how long such promises will hold up in the event of a possible change in the government.
At the internal level, Cavallo sets clear conditions. In the view of the employee representatives on the Supervisory Board, a new plant in the United States, regardless of brand, cannot be considered unless there is a clear vision of the implications for other plants, especially in Germany.
“We will not give the green light without getting a comprehensive picture during the planning round that covers all the sites,” Cavallo said. “This means that the decision has not been made yet.”
She added that the issue of finally approving the option of establishing the new factory is still open.
This opinion is also shared by automobile expert Frank Schwoe from the Higher Institute for Vocational Education for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises in Berlin. He told Bild newspaper that the construction of a new Audi factory in the United States "generally threatens jobs in Germany."
He added that the company is already suffering from a surplus in production capacity, expressing his concern about the possibility of moving models and jobs "so that German factories become redundant."
He believes that the Neckarsholm factory, which has about 15,000 employees, is particularly at risk. Porsche jobs in Germany may also disappear if Porsche models are manufactured in the new American factory in the future.
