The Volkswagen factory in São Bernardo do Campo, in the ABC region of São Paulo, will resume operating in two shifts from the 2nd of March, after having its activities reduced mainly due to the lack of semiconductors.
Since last November, the Anchieta plant has been forced to cut its production pace to one shift and put about a thousand employees on lay-off, as the temporary suspension of contracts is called.
According to the ABC Metalworkers Union, which represents the category, the priority was to keep jobs during the period of reduction in the unit’s activities.
In a note, union director Wellington Messias Damasceno said that the return of the second shift brings relief to workers. “Whenever production increases, there is a greater expectation of tranquility and advances.”
Volkswagen confirmed the return of the second shift at the Anchieta unit and the end of the lay-off for the approximately one thousand employees. Currently, the automaker has about 8,000 direct employees in the country.
The sector was one of the most affected by the shortage of semiconductors, which came with the uneven recovery of countries after the beginning of the pandemic and the breakdown of production chains.
The lack of chips harmed, in addition to the automotive industry, the entire technology sector and the production of cell phones, televisions and video games, for example.
On Wednesday, executives at Volkswagen’s German headquarters said they still expect a continued impact from the semiconductor shortage this year, although they are able to ramp up production in the second half of the year.
According to Chief Executive Herbert Diess, the supply situation is improving, but even in 2022 it will not be possible to assemble enough cars to meet consumer demands. “But we see opportunities for further increases in production, especially in the second half,” Diess said in a speech.
Diess said chip supply is the only major challenge at the moment, with top models from its premium brands already sold out for the entirety of 2022, while its truck business also has a large backlog.
To reassure the market, the Semiconductor Industries Association (SIA) said earlier this week that global chip sales reached record 2021 sales of $555.9 billion. , an increase of 26.2% in the year, and forecast a growth of 8.8% for 2022.
While leading semiconductor manufacturers such as TSMC, Samsung and Intel announced tens of billions of dollars in investments for new factories last year, the entity estimates that the pandemic-accelerated digitization trend will continue to increase demand for the product.
with Reuters
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