Wage talks between the trade union of carmaker Audi Hungaria (AHFSZ) and management collapsed on January 23, after which unions called a one week strike starting on Thursday at the plant in Gyor, western Hungary.

Last Friday, the union held a two-hour warning strike after the employees rejected the company's offer of a 10% wage increase for 2019 and 2020 alike. The union is seeking an 18% hike to the basic wage which amounts to at least HUF75,000 (€233), among other salary demands.

Further, it wants each worker to be guaranteed one full weekend each month as well as child-related and age-related leave. Labour unions called last week's work stoppage successful, as it was supported by all 4,000 workers in shift.

Audi workers in Hungary are not paid that badly by local standards. They receive a monthly gross of HUF444,000 per month, 50% above the national average but it is still below fellow Audi workers in the region. Union leaders said employees of the Volkswagen group in Slovakia earn 25% more in the Czech Republic, 28% more in Slovakia and 39% more in Poland.

Union leader Sandor Nemeth said that the talks would continue during the strike, and the action would be terminated "if an acceptable wage offer is received". 

Germany's largest trade union, IG Metall has expressed full support for the strike, saying that results can only be achieved by international cooperation with international companies. It has followed protests over the contested overtime rules on its website. The AHFSZ also received solidarity statements from the representations of the factories in Wolfsburg, Ingolstadt, Bologna, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, and Poland.

Audi has become the largest employer and exporter in the Hungarian automotive industry in the past 25 years. Since then it has invested more than €8.9bn and increased staff to 13,000 at the Gyor plant. 

The company produced 1.97mn last year and turned out 105,491 vehicles in 2017 when it reported revenues of €7.14bn. Audi also operates one of the largest toolmaking facilities in Central Europe at its Hungarian plant. The company started the mass production of electric engines last summer.