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And the company has to save moneyVW pays ex-boss millions – even though he has been gone for three years
Former boss Herbert Diess earns more for doing nothing than current boss Oliver Blume.
IMAGO/Sven Simon
Volkswagen has to save money and cut jobs, but millions continue to flow at the top.
While the car manufacturer is cutting jobs and profits are collapsing, one man is collecting large amounts of money who is no longer working: ex-VW boss Herbert Diess. The revelation is now causing great irritation.
Highest earner in the group – even though he is long gone
The shock at Volkswagen is deep. It was only on Tuesday (March 10th) that the company announced bad news: Profits have fallen by almost half and tens of thousands of jobs are to be cut. But in a year of crisis, of all times, a former boss earns the most.
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As the current compensation report shows, ex-VW boss Herbert Diess will receive more than nine million euros in 2025. That's around 1.5 million euros more than the current CEO Oliver Blume collects. The explosive thing: Diess had to vacate his post in 2022.
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The contract continued despite the farewell
Volkswagen explains the payment in response to RTL's request as follows: “Mr. Diess has received the salary of a CEO in accordance with the applicable remuneration regulations until his contract expires on October 24, 2025.” DThe 67-year-old left Volkswagen in 2022, but his contract was legally valid until October 2025. ESo he just kept running after he left.
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Labor lawyer Jens Klinkert explains in an RTL interview: “You have to write into the contract at the start of the contract that, under certain conditions, the fixed-term contract will be ended, either through a severance payment or through a reduction in salary if the economic circumstances change. If something like this is not previously regulated in the contract, such a clause cannot be inserted later.”
Austerity programs and job cuts are causing discontent
This is causing trouble right now. Because Volkswagen is in the middle of the austerity program. Around 50,000 jobs in Germany are to be cut across the group by 2030. At the same time, net profit fell by 44 percent. The current challenges remain enormous. “Tariffs are unlikely to go away anytime soon and geopolitical tensions and ongoing uncertainties will continue to impact global trade.”says VW manager Thomas Schäfer at the annual media conference.
After all: the million-dollar phase is now over. Herbert Diess has been officially retired since October 2025. This year, Volkswagen no longer has to transfer CEO salary to the former boss.
Sources used: own RTL research, Handelsblatt
