Volkswagen said on Feb. 16 it had agreed to guarantee the jobs of 100,000 workers in Germany until the end of 2014.

IG Metall trade union said  "the company and employee representatives affirmed their commitment to jointly achieve productivity rises," the statement said.

A "performance-related remuneration component" was also agreed upon, as was the hiring of apprentices based on how well they did during a training period.

The agreement covers 100,000 workers and extends a previous job guarantee that was to run until 2011 in VW plants and at the financing division of Europe's biggest auto manufacturer.

Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2010