Schaeffler AG has announced a further performance improvement program following the completion of restructuring measures initiated in November 2024 and the conclusion of 1,800 partial retirement agreements in early October. The program aims to reduce overcapacity, adjust development capacity, lower personnel costs, and decrease organizational complexity in response to the persistently challenging automotive environment, characterized by weakened demand for internal combustion engine vehicles and a delayed ramp-up of electric mobility, according to the release issued via NEWMEDIAWIRE.
The workforce reduction will see a net total of 3,460 positions eliminated in the Europe region, with approximately 50 percent in production, 30 percent in research and development, and 20 percent in other functional areas. The cuts will affect 16 locations in Europe, including the closure of five sites, four of them in Germany. Specifically, the Dortmund plant, which currently employs 430 people, and the Morbach site with 160 employees, both belonging to the Powertrain & Chassis division and manufacturing products for internal combustion engines, are slated for closure. Additionally, operations at the Berlin site, employing about 270 people, will be discontinued, and the Schwalbach site will be closed, with a large portion of its approximately 385 employees expected to transfer to the Schaeffler site in Frankfurt. In total, around 190 positions will be affected by the reduction. Toolmaking operations at Höchstadt will be discontinued, and adjustments to special machinery manufacturing at Erlangen and Schweinfurt are planned. Capacity and structural adjustments are also planned at other German locations, including Herzogenaurach, Bühl, Höchstadt, Nürnberg, and Regensburg. Outside Germany, production and development capacities at the French locations in Haguenau and Toulouse, as well as at the locations in Skalica and Kysuce in Slovakia, will be adjusted. The Herstal production site in Belgium, with approximately 15 employees, will be closed.
The planned reduction of 2,660 positions in Germany represents approximately eight percent of the core workforce of 31,957 employees as of September 30, 2026, by 2028. When including job reductions from legacy programs and the 1,800 partial-retirement agreements already signed, the percentage increases to approximately 18 percent. The job cuts will be supplemented by a solidarity contribution that includes a temporary, voluntary compensation reduction across all hierarchical levels, starting with the Board of Managing Directors. This contribution aims to lower costs per employee, thereby reducing the necessary job cuts and associated one-time expenses, and is expected to provide immediate relief to the income statement in 2027 and 2028. Without the solidarity contribution, the job cuts would have been even more extensive.
CEO Klaus Rosenfeld reaffirmed the company's commitment to Germany as a business location, stating: “With the performance improvement program announced today, we want to demonstrate that, despite the challenging operating environment, it is both possible and sensible to develop and manufacture in Germany and Europe in a way that is competitive and cost-efficient over the long term. This requires that we consolidate locations, bundle technological expertise in selected regional clusters, and optimize costs per employee.”
The program is expected to generate savings of approximately 300 million euros per year by 2030, with one-time expenses of approximately 480 million euros, the majority of which will be recognized as restructuring provisions in 2026. Implementation of the structural measures is primarily scheduled for 2027 and 2028 and will be carried out in close dialogue with employee representatives, building on the Future Accord concluded in 2018. The company views new growth areas, particularly humanoid robotics and defense, as opportunities to offset some of the job reductions, in line with its strategy to become the leading Motion Technology Company. The original release is available at www.newmediawire.com.
