The International Trade Union Network of Solidarity and Struggles supports the strike by Valeo workers in Poland! Here is the text from the Sierpień 80 union website.

The patience of the automotive giant's employees has run out. On 20 November, an indefinite general strike began at Valeo's factories in Chrzanów, Trzebinia and Mysłowice. After last-minute talks failed and a series of warning strikes, the team walked off the production lines. At stake is not only a pay rise of 1,000 zlotys [€235], but – as the employees themselves say – a return to dignity.

‘Respect starts with pay’

At exactly 6 a.m., instead of the hum of machinery, whistles and sirens sounded outside the gates of the Valeo Lighting Systems factory in Chrzanów. Hundreds of workers, wearing union vests, refused to work, gathering at the entrance with banners. The slogans were clear: ‘No more exploitation’, ‘We are humans, not robots’ and the key message of the protest: ‘Respect starts with pay’.

The immediate reason for the escalation of the conflict is the lack of a wage agreement with the company's management. The WZZ ‘August 80’ union, which is coordinating the campaign, is demanding:

• Salary increases of PLN 1,000 [€235] gross for each employee.

• Increases in compensation for working in a four-shift system (from the current PLN 280 [€66] to PLN 600 [€141.50]).

• Introduction of a seniority allowance and improved social conditions.

According to the employees, many of them, despite years of experience and working in difficult conditions, receive remuneration that is close to the minimum wage.

‘People faint from the heat at the machines, and you have to ask for a break. We are monitored all the time, even when going to the toilet, the time is measured with a stopwatch in hand. It's a labour camp, not a modern factory,’ reports one of the production workers who are now taking action against this situation.

From warning to paralysis

The road to a general strike has been long. In mid-November (12-14 November), warning strikes – two-hour stoppages for each shift – took place in the factories. They were intended as a ‘yellow card’ for the management. Despite this, negotiations failed to make progress. Valeo management, citing ‘the difficult situation in the automotive industry’, deemed it impossible to meet the demands in their current form.

The decision to hold a general strike was taken after a referendum in which over 90% of workers voted in favour of this radical form of protest. The action not only affected the largest factory in Chrzanów (which produces lighting systems), but also spread to branches in Trzebinia and Mysłowice, threatening to disrupt the supply chain of major car brands in Europe.

The company's position: ‘irresponsibility in times of crisis’

In a statement, Valeo's management emphasised that it respected the right to strike but described the ongoing action as ‘irresponsible’.

‘The employer hopes that it will outlast us, that we will return to the machines because of a lack of money. But we have nothing left to lose, because it is impossible to survive on the current wages anyway,’ said Katarzyna Jamróz, the leader of the movement.

If management does not return to the negotiating table with a new proposal, the strike in Chrzanów could become one of the largest employee protests in Polish industry in 2025.

The Valeo strikers will leave for France next Tuesday to gather in front of Valeo's head office.

PS. Fundraising to support Valéo Chrzanów employees thinking about striking: here.

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In France, a rally will take place on Wednesday, 26 November 2025

at 10:00 a.m. in front of Valeo's headquarters at 100 rue de Courcelles, 75017 Paris.

 

The SUD Industrie trade union (see here)

[member of the SOLIDAIRES trade union, part of the International Trade Union Network of Solidarity and Struggles]

and CGT (see here)

are supporting the Valeo strikers in Poland.

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Short movie with english subtitles from 2-hours warning strike 12.11.2026

 

Short call for the strike fund, english

Longer article giving some context, in english

Francais

Ia short movie from the blockade yesterday 

 

Latest news, Monday 24 November

Valeo management:
- is opening negotiations.
- is paying everyone a one-off gross bonus of 1,000 zlotys (€236).
- will not punish anyone (previously, strikers had received emails threatening them with dismissal, legal action for costs related to the strike and blockades, etc.).
- will set up a social inspection of working conditions to check these conditions on a daily basis.

The strikers continue to maintain their demands (a 1,000 zloty/month pay rise, working conditions, etc.).
The management of Valeo Chorzów has received a request for explanations from the French Consul!

Below is the translation of the text:

Preliminary provisions following the meeting between representatives of WZZ Sierpien 80 Valeo Chrzanów and representatives of Valeo held at the Lesser Poland Voivodeship Office [equivalent to a county council] on 24 November 2025.
1. No employee or the August 80 trade union shall be subject to disciplinary, financial or legal liability or additional costs for blocking the establishment.
2. Following joint arrangements and agreements, the factory will be unblocked without undue delay. The union is not withdrawing from the strike.
3. On 8 December 2025, at the Office of the Voivodeship of Lesser Poland [Krakow region], in the presence of the second vice-voivode [vice-prefect], the Mayor of Chrzanów and the Starost [a type of sub-prefect] of Chrzanów, joint negotiations will begin between the two unions in Chrzanów and the employer on remuneration for the years 2025/2026, working conditions and the creation of a team composed of union representatives, the employer and the Departmental Council for Social Dialogue.
4. The social team mentioned in point 3, acting from 1 January 2026, will send a monthly report to the second deputy voivode of Lesser Poland. This report must be signed by all members of the team.

Translated with DeepL.com (free version)