Increasing attractiveness as an employer and target-group-specific development programs

A family-friendly human resources policy is a major component of Volkswagen’s attractiveness as an employer; in particular, it contributes to greater gender equality. We are working continuously to develop family-friendly models for working time models and to increase the number of women in management positions. In line with German law on the equal participation of women and men in leadership positions (Führpos-GleichberG – German Act on the Equal Participation of Women and Men in Leadership Positions in the Private and Public Sectors), Volkswagen AG is aiming to have a 13.0% share of women at the first management level and 16.9% at the second management level by the end of 2021. As of December 31, 2019, the proportion of women in the active workforce at the first level of management was 11.4 (10.7)% and at the second level of management it was 16.4 (15.4)%.

We have set targets for every board-level division at Volkswagen AG regarding the development of the proportion of women in management to encourage women with high potential to advance within the Company. This approach is supported by many different measures ranging from cross-brand mentoring programs to a quota system for the management selection procedure and targets for the share of women among external hires.

In recent years, a large number of company regulations have also come into effect in the Group to make it easier for employees to balance the demands of work and home life and allow staff to arrange their own individual working model. These include flexible working hours, variable part-time work and shift models, leave of absence programs enabling employees to care for family members, childcare services that are associated with the company or are company-owned, and mobile working.

At Volkswagen AG, which entered into its works agreement for mobile working already back in 2016, more than 23 thousand employees were making use of a more flexible working arrangement as of the end of the 2019 fiscal year.