After Ending Production of the UP!, Volkswagen Places More Than 2,000 Employees at Its Factory in SP on Collective Vacation

The German Multinational Volkswagen May Also End Production of the Gol, Voyage, and Fox at Its Factory in Taubaté, SP

After the significant exit of Ford from the country, removing the EcoSport SUV and the Ka family from its lineup, the German multinational Volkswagen announced last Wednesday (04/07) the end of production of the Up! at the factory in Taubaté, putting over 2,200 employees from its factory in SP on collective vacation from May 3 to 12.

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According to the Metalworkers’ Union, Volkswagen made this decision to implement the MQB production platform, a new technology used by the German multinational.

The organization also states that the agreement for installing the new platform, made in 2020, guarantees five years of job stability and the production of an exclusive model for the unit.

The automaker stated in a note that “the granting of collective vacation for employees at the Taubaté factory is a technical stop for maintenance of the production lines.”

The German Multinational Volkswagen May Also End Production of the Gol, Voyage, and Fox

After Ending Production of the Up!, Volkswagen’s factory in Taubaté (SP) produces the Voyage and Gol models, which are also in the sights of the automaker after many years on the road.

Until the German company decides whether it will also remove these models from its lineup in Brazil and produce a new vehicle at the factory, which has not yet been confirmed by the automaker, Volkswagen’s Taubaté factory will continue to produce two models: Gol and Voyage.

In March, 11,000 Volkswagen cars were registered, including Gol, Up!, and Voyage, according to data from Fenabrave. The Gol was the third most registered car in the country, with 6,800 units; the Voyage had 3,600 registrations, and the Up! had only 563.

Taubaté – SP Struggles with the Crisis in the Industry

Taubaté has been heavily impacted by the industrial crisis in 2021. The multinationals Ford and LG, which had been operating in the city for years, are set to close their local productions.

The first announcement was from Ford in January, and about 830 metalworkers are expected to lose their jobs at the automaker’s engine factory. Ford announced that it would end vehicle production at its factories in Brazil in 2021. In total, 5,000 jobs are expected to be affected in Taubaté, Camaçari (BA), and Horizonte (CE).

Last week, LG also announced the end of production at its factory in Taubaté (SP). The South Korean company decided to close its global cellphone operations in Brazil, produced exclusively at the unit, and transfer the monitor and notebook sector to the factory in Manaus (AM).

The exit of the South Korean company is expected to result in the closure of 700 direct jobs, in addition to impacting the supply chain in the region. According to the Metalworkers’ Union, three exclusive suppliers of LG are also expected to cease operations due to the loss of demand from the South Korean company, leading to the layoff of another 430 people.