Porsche may be a niche label but it remains one of the most profitable carmakers in the world and expects to see profits lift even further than the record levels of 2006. Officials said sales rose 3.4% to €7.4 billion for the last financial year, while sales grew by 0.7% to 97,515 units in total. Porsche also earns a significant portion of its profit from its majority stake in VW Group, which is also enjoying record sales.

Things are looking so cheery for Porsche that it can afford to offer a one-off bonus to all its full-time employees that joined before August 2006, roughly 8,000 in all, amounting to €5,200 (US$7,350). Compare this with the situation in the U.S. where workers at GM were forced to strike for their health care coverage and pension payouts.

Both the management and unions agree the record profits are the result of increases made to productivity, flexibility and quality in the company and most importantly because of the dedicated work of its staff. This is why Porsche is once again handing out a share of the gross company profits to its hard-working employees.