Thousands of Mercedes-Benz workers are set to protest across Germany against the carmaker’s tough cost-cutting drive.
IG Metall, Germany’s largest trade union, called for demonstrations outside factory gates, with rallies planned in places including Sindelfingen, Untertürkheim, Rastatt, Bremen, Berlin, Hamburg and Düsseldorf.
The union said the Mercedes protests would mark the beginning of further action in the auto industry. It accused carmakers and suppliers of focusing on job cuts and relocation rather than real solutions and said around 50,000 jobs were cut in the sector last year.
“Employees are not to blame for the crisis,” IG Metal said.
In a letter to workers in Germany, the board said the company must continue to cut costs to remain competitive. “Despite all our efforts, the situation in Germany today is dramatic,” it said.
Mercedes said it takes employee concerns seriously and seeks to communicate difficult decisions, including difficult ones, to employees quickly and transparently.
As an immediate step forward, about 90,000 of the company’s approximately 108,000 employees in Germany will not receive a collectively agreed special payment in July as expected. Payment worth 18.4% of the single monthly salary is to be postponed until next year.
Mercedes also said it wants to speed up processes, streamline structures and make hourly labor costs cheaper.