Volkswagen announces 200 additional jobs in Chattanooga

Local Volkswagen officials announced Wednesday that the company will soon begin providing more jobs to the area by staffing a variable workforce of about 200 people. 

"This program is planned to start in the summer and will begin recruiting in the next few weeks," Hans-Herbert Jagla, Volkswagen Chattanooga's executive vice president for human resources, said. "We expect a lot of applications for the program." 

Staffing agency Aerotek will hire the employees, who will eventually have the opportunity to become permanent VW employees, officials said. 

"It's full-time employment — 40 hours a week plus overtime with holiday pay and wage progression," Aerotek National Account Executive Lucas Hiler said. 

Aerotek is still in the preliminary stages of accepting applications and has yet to identify a candidate pool.

"The positions are on the production line," Hiler said. 

Details about how to apply for the positions are forthcoming in the next couple of days, he said. 

"These positions are in addition to the 2,000 jobs that VW has brought to Chattanooga," Hiler said. "I think that's very positive — it's not taking jobs away from Volkswagen. This will benefit Chattanooga." 

Hiler also said they are not sure how long of a period the variable workforce will be considered temporary. 

"Employment always depends on the market," Jagla said. "My goal is to hire them if the market is stable." 

He also said that the employees will receive the same training as any other VW employee.

The variable workforce announcement came Wednesday at a progress update, at which officials also discussed first quarter earnings and the company's efforts to help tornado victims.  

Volkswagen Chattanooga CEO and Chair Frank Fischer said that Volkswagen AG's first quarter was better than expected with a 17 percent year-to-date sales increase. 

"It is important for us, even as a production company, to hear these figures, also in order to get ready to launch our Passat into the market in the third quarter of 2011," he said. "We are heading in the right direction." 

Within 24 hours of last week's tornadoes, Volkswagen officials gave $100,000 to the relief efforts through a fund administered by the Community Foundation of Greater Chattanooga.

"The donation was kind of the money that primped the pump," Pete Cooper, president of the Community Foundation, said.

After providing the initial donation, VW left the fund open, so others could contribute. Current commitments and receipts have bumped the fund balance to $1.1 million. 

Fischer said that, overall, the company is doing well in Chattanooga.

"We are on track," he said. "We love our people. We like to be here. It's a nice environment and we are building the best cars."