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REPORT: German union leader calls on Porsche CEO to end ego trip, merge with VW
Volkswagen labor union chief Bernd Osterloh has called out Porsche's CEO for holding up a merger between the two German automakers: "Together, one could do a whole lot of more things if [Wendelin] Wiedeking would end his ego trip." Osterloh believes Wiedeking is standing in the way of a tie-up with VW, and his repeated thrusts and parries are only making things difficult for both companies. Osterloh further accused the Porsche head of being "part of the problem and not part of the solution," claiming that he has "absolutely no more trust in the current board of Porsche." Although Porsche and VW may benefit from coming closer together, it is also clear that Porsche needs VW more than the other way around. Should the two bickering automakers eventually manage to come to terms, however, the powerful union leader has one last barb to throw: "Wiedeking isn't running our company, and he never will."
[Source: Bloomberg | Image: David Hecker/Getty]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
ij70 7:06PM (7/10/2009)
Porsche's CEO reply: Make me.
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220v 7:08PM (7/10/2009)
More egotistical than claiming you know what's better for two large corporations, Herr Osterloh? What an idiot.
It seems union chiefs the world over are a bunch of worthless buffoons, just like the organizations they lead.
Why can't we all agree that unions are from an era gone by?
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FSM 7:51PM (7/10/2009)
Agreed because business no longer desires to exploit their workers unreasonably and only have the best intentions for their employees and customers in mind. Oh and also business should be free of pesky meddling by government regulations because they would never due anything stupid with billions of dollars that threatens the stability of the global economy.
audi_arena 9:13AM (7/11/2009)
Regardless, Osterloh is right.
Nozferat 3:56AM (7/11/2009)
This union would definitely lead to more dull, sterile Teutonic cars that look the same year after year after year after year.
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car industry expert 5:49AM (7/11/2009)
Volkswagen is the greatest car company, better than crappy GM and Chrysler. Why do you think they are THE most successfull car maker at the moment. You lot just think your crappy American cars are the best but your the worst nation at making cars on the planet. The only reason Ford is propsperous is because the Anglo-German Ford of Europe cars are so brilliant. The Brits and the Germans make the best cars. Volkswagen also own some of the worlds greatest brands, Lamborghini, Bugatti, and Bentley and soon Porsche. Also if you don't think that the Brits had a crap car industry it's because everyone tries to buy our brands because they are so brilliant. Nobody has ever wanted to buy an American brand exept Daimler and Daimler was in he end dragged down by Chrysler.
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Alex 10:06AM (7/11/2009)
Nice post, "car industry expert." I've never heard a car industry expert claiming that the Brits made fantastic cars.
European brands consistently score lower on reliability than Japanese, Korean, and in many cases American cars. Ford is doing fine because they make quality cars in Europe and in America (although yes, the European models are better, it has nothing to do with the nationality of the people producing them. Ford's management is what's running their European plants, not their workers' national flag.) Chrysler is a bag of crap and shouldn't exist, that's the only thing true in your post.
All the super car brands you mentioned VW owning are not cars any typical person would buy, that statement is irrelevant. In the US VW suffers from poor quality perception (and reality) as well as below average value. (I'm not bashing, I own one)
Most British cars I can think of are owned by foreigners. Jaguar/Land Rover is owned by an Indian car company. Ford owned Aston Martin for a 13 year span, and is now owned primarily by foreign investors. The rest of the British brands are no longer in production, because they broke and rusted out.
Cougs 11:27AM (7/11/2009)
Troll much?
How's British Leyland doing btw?
Jared 12:28PM (7/11/2009)
British car brands so brilliant? Really? How much money was British Leyland losing before it went bust? How much money is Jaugar losing? How much money is Land Rover losing?
IOMTT 10:21AM (7/11/2009)
I wonder if people on here realize how intertwined VW ( and also Audi ) and Porsche are from an historical and family perspective. From the origins of the VW Beetle to the Auto Union Silver Arrows, to the first Porsche sports cars built in Gmund, Austria from VW components. As long as the 911 remains true to it's tradition for the core customer, this merger may not be the worst thing for Porsche given history. Imagine what could happen if another manufacturer ever acquired Porsche.
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