Schaeffler is cutting thousands of jobs and closing four German plants

The automotive and industrial supplier Schaeffler is cutting thousands more jobs and closing four German plants. The group is thus significantly tightening its austerity measures.

The company plans to cut a further 3,460 jobs in Europe, including 2,660 in Germany, it announced in a statement. That's around nine percent of the group's current 32,000 employees in Germany. Including previously agreed programs, Schaeffler is cutting around 18 percent of its German jobs.

Specifically, the plants in Dortmund with 430 employees and in Morbach in Rhineland-Palatinate with 160 employees are also to close in Germany. Products for combustion engines are manufactured at both locations. In addition, the Berlin and Schwalbach locations near Frankfurt am Main are to be closed. As a result, 270 jobs will be lost in Berlin; The majority of the approximately 385 employees in Schwalbach are to move to the Schaeffler factory in Frankfurt.

The group also plans to restructure and partially shrink production in Höchstadt, Erlangen, Schweinfurt, Herzogenaurach, Bühl, Nuremberg and Regensburg.

In addition, the remaining workforce will voluntarily forego part of their salary over the next two years. “Without the solidarity contribution, the job cuts would have been even greater,” says the company statement.

The annual result is expected to improve by 300 million euros from 2030 as a result of the measures. Schaeffler boss Klaus Rosenfeld estimates one-time costs of around 480 million euros for the savings program. The group justified the further cuts with the “automobile crisis in Europe,” which required further countermeasures and structural adjustments.