The Group Board of Management, the European Works Council and the Global Works Council of Volkswagen Aktiengesellschaft today signed a “Charter on Vocational Education and Training within the Volkswagen Group”. The objective of the charter is to secure adequate conditions for apprentices in the spirit of the Volkswagen Social Charter and the Volkswagen Charter on Labour Relations.
The charter was signed by the CEO, Prof. Dr. Martin Winterkorn, the Board Member for Human Resources, Dr. Horst Neumann, the Chairman of the European and Global Works Councils, Bernd Osterloh, and the Secretary General of the Global Works Council, Frank Patta, when the Presidium of the Volkswagen European Works Council and the Volkswagen Group Global Works Council met at the Audi plant in Brussels.
Winterkorn said: “All over the world, the Volkswagen Group sets great store by sound vocational training because that secures highly-qualified skilled employees for our company. Good vocational training is the basis for a powerful team, outstanding quality and top products. With this commitment to the training of young people, the Volkswagen Group is also proactively shouldering responsibility for society and the future of our plants worldwide.”
Neumann underscored: “Specialist knowledge and skills are the foundation for good career perspectives and secure jobs. That is why Volkswagen attaches the utmost importance to first-class dual vocational training in our Berufsfamilien (vocational groups) where theory and practice are closely linked. Already today, the majority of some 20,000 apprentices at Volkswagen worldwide are training based on the dual principle.”
Osterloh commented: “The dual vocational training system is a successful model and one of Volkswagen’s export hits. Vocational education and training at Volkswagen brings tremendous opportunities for the apprentices and the company. This charter ensures that young people who complete their vocational training at Volkswagen acquire knowledge and skills of comparable high standards.”
Among other things, the charter prescribes attractive vocational education and training that offers an access path into the Volkswagen Group and forms an important component in sustainable long-term personnel planning. It is the charter’s stated goal to qualify young people for an occupation and to prepare them for professional life. This involves developing the skills required for the start within their future Berufsfamilien at Volkswagen. At the same time, the diversity of legal requirements, social, economic and cultural aspects in the various countries must be respected.
The charter covers basic issues such as the selection process to choose the most suitable applicants, the duration and quality of vocational education and training, material, facilities and infrastructure for teaching learning content. In addition, the charter sets out provisions regarding monetary and non-monetary support for apprentices, their operating time and break time, vacations, the transition to a post-apprentice employment, and representation.
