WIESBADEN (dpa-AFX) - Germany's automotive sector is reeling from a series of grim announcements, with the latest blow coming from truck and bus manufacturer MAN, a subsidiary of VW's commercial vehicle holding Traton. MAN plans to cut around 2,300 jobs in Germany over the next decade. The main sites affected are Munich, with 1,300 jobs at risk, Salzgitter with 600, and Nuremberg with 400. The IG Metall union reports even higher figures and expresses long-term concerns about the future of these locations.
The depth of the crisis in this key German sector is underscored by new data from the Federal Statistical Office. At the end of the third quarter, the auto industry employed some 48,700 fewer people than a year earlier--a drop of 6.3 percent, "higher than in any other major industrial sector with more than 200,000 employees." With 721,400 people working in the auto industry, employment has fallen to its lowest level since mid-2011.
The automotive sector is grappling with sharply increased US tariffs, a global sales slump, and stiff competition from China, especially in electric vehicles. Recently, supply shortages of chips from Dutch manufacturer Nexperia have added to the woes. According to statisticians, auto suppliers are even more affected by job losses in the sector's crisis than manufacturers themselves.
Prospects for improvement appear bleak: many companies have recently announced job reduction programs that will continue for some time. These include industry giants like Bosch and ZF Friedrichshafen, as well as Mercedes and the VW Group and its brands, including MAN.
MAN Aims to Avoid Layoffs
MAN explained that its cost-cutting measures are necessary to adapt to the persistently weak truck market in Germany and to further improve its cost position. High electricity and labor costs, along with growing pressure from Asian competitors, are also taking their toll. However, a company spokesperson emphasized that the job cuts are intended to be "absolutely socially responsible." Layoffs are not planned. IG Metall and the works council have sharply criticized the plans, with Sybille Wankel from IG Metall warning that the long-term existence of the Munich plant is at risk.
The union also expects higher job loss figures than those stated by MAN, projecting the long-term loss of up to 2,000 jobs in Munich and 500 in Nuremberg. The union fears that the relocation of production to Poland could also threaten research and development jobs, which have been transferred to the parent company Traton.
Bavarian IG Metall chief Horst Ott announced plans to confront MAN management. He strongly urged the board to enter into talks and warned of escalation, though he did not specify what form this might take. Ott stressed, however, that IG Metall "has the right tool for every problem. Which one we use depends on our counterpart."
120,000 Industrial Jobs Lost
The auto industry is not the only sector losing jobs. According to the Federal Statistical Office, the entire German industrial sector employed around 5.43 million people at the end of the third quarter--a decrease of 120,300 or 2.2 percent within a year.
The data highlight the crisis hotspots within German industry, said Sebastian Dullien, scientific director at the Macroeconomic Policy Institute (IMK) of the Hans Böckler Foundation. Overall, the decline in employment has been moderate relative to the drop in production and orders. "It is not too late to save the majority of industrial jobs," Dullien said.
Machinery Sector Also Struggling
Significant job losses have also occurred in other key sectors such as machinery manufacturing, Germany's largest industrial sector by workforce. Employment there fell by 2.2 percent to around 934,200 by the end of the third quarter. The chemical industry saw a slight decline of 1.2 percent to 323,600 employees over the year, while the electrical equipment sector shrank by 0.4 percent to 387,500.
The steepest job reductions were seen in metal production and processing, down 5.4 percent, and in the manufacture of data processing, electronic, and optical products, down 3.0 percent. According to statistics, the only major industrial sector to see employment growth was the food industry, which increased by 1.8 percent to 510,500 people.
"Germany Needs Comprehensive Industrial Policy"
In light of the aggressive economic policies of the United States--now under President Donald Trump, who began his second term in January 2025--and China, economist Dullien said Germany needs a comprehensive industrial policy. Both powers are seeking to boost domestic production. "This comes at the expense of German industry," Dullien commented. "Germany should encourage the EU to define its own key sectors and use the internal market to promote European production in these areas."/als/DP/men
