Night Shift Walks Out at Ingolstadt: 3,000 Audi Workers Press 5% Pay Claim as Talks Turn Bitter
Published on 11/04/2026 at 06:21 | Editorial boerse-global.de
Assembly lines at Audi's Ingolstadt plant fell silent at 23:15 on 2 November 2026, after roughly 3,000 employees on the permanent night shift and at the freight transport centre downed tools for two hours. The walkout was the latest warning strike in the metal and electrical industry dispute, called to back IG Metall's pay demands — and to deliver an unusually blunt message to the carmaker's leadership.
A rally, then a two-hour halt
The protest began at 23:00 in a car park at the corner of Ettinger Straße and Furtwänglerstraße. Workers from service providers Scherm Logistik and DP World Logistics joined Audi staff in the stoppage, which followed the expiry of the peace obligation on 31 October 2026.
IG Metall is seeking a 5% pay rise for the sector's 3.7 million employees nationwide, along with a social component for lower pay grades, over a 12-month term. The union has also tabled a €110 increase in apprentice pay, collective safeguards for sites and jobs, and a profit-sharing payment tied to company performance.
Union leader turns fire on Döllner
Discontent at the rally extended beyond the employers' offer to Audi's corporate strategy. Horst Ott, district manager of IG Metall Bavaria, attacked Audi chief executive Gernot Döllner over his appearance at a campaign event for Donald Trump, calling the move "pathetisch und peinlich" — pitiful and embarrassing.
Ott said the planned investment in the United States was the right call, but the timing was wrong. The negotiations, he argued, are about recovering the respect the workforce is owed. The backdrop includes Audi's announcement of a new plant in the US state of Georgia, with planned investment of $4 billion.
At the same time, the company is considering closing its Neckarsulm site, citing a bad-weather clause. Works councillor Karola Frank told the rally that the workforce would not allow itself to be made the scapegoat.
Employers' two-year offer rejected
Strikers dismissed the employers' proposal outright. It provides for a two-year collective agreement with a one-off payment worth 1% of gross annual salary in summer 2027 and a 1.3% pay increase in summer 2028. The one-off payment could also be cancelled for companies in weak financial shape.
Strikes spread across Bavaria
The Ingolstadt stoppage formed part of a wider wave of industrial action. IG Metall called walkouts at 41 companies for Tuesday, with larger actions in Augsburg, Passau and Aschaffenburg. According to union figures, 8,500 employees at 40 Bavarian companies took part on the day.
Beyond Audi's 3,000, those included 1,000 at ZF in Passau, 650 at Renk in Augsburg and 500 at Everllence. Further stoppages hit Linde in Aschaffenburg with 400 participants, Waldrich Coburg with 290 and Kitzingen with 270. Nationwide, the union is planning protests at more than 2,000 companies as the dispute continues.
