Union at Volkswagen plant files complaint over recruitment discrimination

According to trade union delegates who filed a complaint against the company in March 1998, the Volkswagen car plant in Brussels mainly recruits workers of Belgian origin. This claim is, however, rejected by the management, which says that its only concern is with the qualifications and linguistic competence of new workers.

The Belgian General Federation of Labour (Fédération Générale du Travail de Belgique/Algemeen Belgisch Vakverbond, FGTB/ABVV), one of the trade unions representing workers at the Volkswagen car factory at Forest (Brussels), filed a complaint in March 1998 with the Centre for Equal Opportunities and Against Racism (Centre pour l'égalité des chances et la lutte contre le racisme), alleging discrimination in the recruitment of workers against people not of Belgian origin.

The Centre is an independent body set up under the aegis of the Prime Minister's office, which aims to promote equal opportunities and fight all forms of discrimination, exclusion and preference based on race, colour, descent, origin or nationality. It can give opinions and recommendations to the authorities and to private individuals and bodies, and can also take legal action in the event of acts motivated by racism or xenophobia.

According to data from the 1996 company report submitted to the workers' representatives at Volkswagen, blue- and white-collar workers of Belgian origin represent 97.58% and 95.34% respectively of the total in each category. They come mostly from Flanders and Wallonia. Blue- and white-collar workers of foreign origin, of all nationalities, represent only 2.42% and 4.66% respectively of the workforce. The under-representation of immigrants living in Brussels is clear, given that they form a quarter of the city's population.

According to union delegates, discrimination in recruitment - mostly against non-Europeans - was confirmed again when nearly 1,400 people were recruited following a September 1997 agreement which allowed a reduction of working time combined with flexibility (BE9709116N): "Management automatically invokes the need not to upset the homogeneity of the firm. Whenever we want to protest at the situation, it uses that argument."

Interviewed by the Le Matin newspaper Marc Croonen, who is in charge of human resources at Volkswagen, said that recruitment was carried out on the basis of qualifications and that few candidates in the tests come from Brussels. As for young people of foreign origin, he added, it may be that they have no qualifications and are furthermore not bilingual in Dutch and French.

The Centre heard the different parties, in particular the company's officials. According to Jean Cornil, deputy director of the Centre: "They have raised questions of vocational qualifications (...). We can accept that they do not apply a discriminatory policy. We remain vigilant, however. And we have made clear to them that in future recruitment campaigns, the doors must not be closed to immigrants."

Reference

"Les syndicats contre le racisme, la xénophobie et la discrimination sur le lieu de travail", E Krzeslo, Confédération européenne des Syndicats, Bruxelles (1997).