Porsche charm offensive leaves VW workers cold

HAMBURG, Germany, Nov 14 (Reuters) - German sports car maker Porsche (PSHG_p.DE) took out full-page newspaper ads on Wednesday to assure wary Volkswagen (VOWG.DE) workers it will not try to break up Europe's biggest carmaker.

But VW labour leaders dismissed the open letter as a publicity stunt by Volkswagen's biggest shareholder, whose way is clear to boost its nearly 31 percent VW holding now that a German law capping voting rights at VW has been struck down.

"Unlike some hedge funds (the so-called locusts), Porsche has an existential interest in keeping your company in its current form," the letter printed in 17 newspapers said.

"There will also be no merger of the two companies. That means Porsche will stay Porsche and Volkswagen stay Volkswagen."

Bernd Osterloh, the head of Volkswagen's works council, was less than impressed.

"Advertising campaigns will not improve the staff's mood in regard to major shareholder Porsche," he said.

"Our colleagues get to read a full-page laudation of how great a company Porsche is. There is not a word about future plans for Volkswagen," he said in a statement.

The letter was published a day after Porsche formally created a new European holding company that will hold the Porsche and Piech families' stakes in both companies.

With 14 times more staff at VW than Porsche, VW labour leaders are trying to get more influence at Porsche Automobil Holding SE in case Porsche boosts its VW stake to a majority.

The row pits VW labour and the IG Metall union -- which traditionally has a big say in how VW is run -- against Porsche Chief Executive Wendelin Wiedeking, who has famously said he will not put up with "sacred cows" when dealing with workers. (Reporting by Jan Schwartz; Editing by Quentin Bryar)