The Herzogenaurach-based automotive and industrial supplier Schaeffler is closing four locations in Germany and cutting 3,460 jobs worldwide. The company announced today that 2,660 jobs were lost in Germany alone. Overall, Schaeffler expects savings of 300 million euros annually from 2030.
The company is reacting to the “continued challenging market environment in the automotive business” by cutting jobs. In addition, there are the above-average per capita personnel costs in Germany and the high complexity of the organization with too many management levels and too few management spans, the reason given was. Schaeffler estimated the cost of the savings program at 480 million euros.
The company demands a salary waiver
The company also announced that 16 locations in Europe will be affected by the job cuts; in Germany alone, four plants will be closed completely. This concerns the factories in Dortmund and Morbach, where parts for combustion engines are manufactured. The branches in Berlin and Schwalbach are also to be closed. Other locations are expected to shrink.
In addition, Schaeffler is demanding a salary waiver from employees, which, however, still has to be negotiated with the union. The board is also involved. “Without the solidarity contribution, the job cuts would have been even greater,” it said. Schaeffler boss Klaus Rosenfeld said this salary waiver was the most important element of the program.
IG Metall accuses Schaeffler of lack of planning
The plans met with sharp criticism from employees. “At Schaeffler, one dismantling program follows the next, even before the consequences of the previous one have been overcome,” explained Thomas Höhn, corporate representative of IG Metall for Schaeffler. “This is not a future concept for Germany as an industrial location.”
Group works council head Uli Schoepplein criticized the fact that the German locations were particularly affected. Schaeffler regularly emphasizes its commitment to Germany as a location. This commitment must be reflected in concrete decisions," he said. "The program presented lacks exactly the creativity that we need in the face of the crisis."
Schoepplein called for a future concept in which the questions of which products will be manufactured in Germany in the future and where investments should be clarified are clarified. Höhn and Schöpplein explained together that only when this is achieved can savings measures be discussed. “Employees cannot pay for the fact that they still lack a job and a location perspective.”
Profits are shrinking significantly
Schaeffler is currently feeling the effects of the slump on the car market. In the past quarter, sales of 5.8 billion euros were just below the previous year's level. Operating profit fell by 7.2 percent to 245 million euros. Business with car manufacturers in particular is weaker. The Powertrain & Chassis division, which includes business with parts for combustion vehicles, among other things, recorded a 15 percent decline in profits. On the other hand, the lucrative spare parts business is doing better.
