Volkswagen AG: Immediate Suspension Of Some Employees

Following the dieselgate scandal that lead to the voluntary resignation of Prof. Dr. Martin Winterkorn as CEO and Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Volkswagen AG, the company announced today that it is taking immediate action to suspend some employees.

In a statement released by the Supervisory Board of Volkswagen AG just minutes ago, the board said:

“With the information currently available the Supervisory Board recommended the immediate suspension of some employees. This process is already underway.”

Berthold Huber, Deputy Chairman of the Supervisory Board, said: “The test manipulations are a moral and political disaster for Volkswagen. The unlawful behaviour of engineers and technicians involved in engine development shocked Volkswagen just as much as it shocked the public. We can only apologize and ask our customers, the public, the authorities and our investors to give us a chance to make amends.”

The board also announced that it has authorised the (interim) Chairman to mandate German and US lawyers to objectively investigate and fully clarify the manipulation of emissions data of diesel engines.

As reported earlier, the Chairman of Porsche AG Mr. Matthias Müller has been appointed as the new CEO, replacing Prof. Dr. Martin Winterkorn.

The board said: “Matthias Müller will lead the Volkswagen Group going forward as the new CEO of Volkswagen AG. He is what the company needs now. Matthias Müller is exactly the right man at the right time to make a fresh start and to drive clarification of the current crisis that has hit our company with decisiveness and to draw the right conclusions. We expressly value his critical and constructive approach.”

It also added that current finance chief Mr. Hans Dieter Pötsch has been appointed as a member of the Supervisory Board, and that the board intends to elect him as Chairman.