Volkswagen is temporarily furloughing its production and maintenance workers at its Chattanooga assembly plant starting Saturday amid the coronavirus pandemic.
“Our primary objective is to protect the financial health of Volkswagen for the benefit of our team as we address the emerging and ongoing impacts of the COVID-19 outbreak on our industry,” Volkswagen Chattanooga CEO Tom du Plessis said Thursday.
While the emergency furloughs are expected to last no more than four weeks and are unpaid, employees will receive quarterly and monthly bonuses and VW will continue to provide health care benefits and cover premiums, the company said.
The furloughed VW employees along with contract workers for companies such as Aerotek, which were asked to take similar action, are expected to number about 2,500, according to VW. The plant produces the Passat sedan, Atlas SUV and Atlas Cross Sport SUV and employs a total of about 3,800 workers.
The automaker is the latest in a number of major Chattanooga area manufacturers that have taken similar actions in response to the coronavirus, including big VW supplier Gestamp, key carpet employer Shaw Industries and tire maker Nokian Tyres.