Schaeffler plans to cut 3,460 jobs across Europe and close four sites in Germany as it steps up its cost-cutting programme. The automotive and industrial supplier said the measures respond to the continuing crisis in Europe’s automotive industry and the need for further structural changes.
The planned closures include the company’s Dortmund site, which employs 430 people, and its Morbach location, with 160 employees. Schaeffler also intends to end operations in Berlin, where about 270 people work, and give up its Schwalbach site. Most of Schwalbach’s roughly 385 employees are expected to move to Schaeffler’s Frankfurt location; about 190 jobs there are affected by the planned cuts.
Further changes include ending toolmaking activities at Höchstadt and adjusting special-machine-building operations in Erlangen and Schweinfurt. Schaeffler also plans capacity and structural changes at other German locations, including Herzogenaurach, Bühl, Höchstadt, Nuremberg and Regensburg. In total, 16 sites in the European region are affected by the job reductions.
The company said about half of the cuts will be in production, 30% in research and development, and 20% in other functions. The programme is intended to reduce excess capacity and personnel costs, adjust development capacity and simplify the organisation.
Schaeffler expects the measures to improve annual earnings by €300 million from 2030. Chief executive Klaus Rosenfeld estimates one-off costs of about €480 million.
IG Metall and the group works council sharply criticised the plans. Thomas Höhn, IG Metall’s representative for Schaeffler, said one job-cutting programme was following another before the effects of the previous measures had been addressed. Schaeffler had already announced thousands of job cuts in 2024 and 2025.
Sources: Handelsblatt.