Germany’s Auto Workers Take to the Streets as Industry Job Losses Top 125,000
Published on 07/05/2026 at 19:25 | Redaktion boerse-global.de
More than 33,000 Mercedes-Benz employees walked off the job on 3 July, the latest flashpoint in a crisis that has already erased 125,800 automotive manufacturing jobs in Germany since 2019, according to consultancy EY. The protests, organized by IG Metall, erupted after management proposed raising the work week to 40 hours without pay compensation and postponing a planned special payment known as the “transformational component”—worth 18.4 percent of a monthly salary—until 2027.
The company’s own count was lower, at 16,000 participants, but union figures put turnout above 33,000 nationwide. In Sindelfingen alone, roughly 20,000 workers gathered. The following day, 4 July, employees from both Mercedes and Volkswagen demonstrated in Bremen, Hamburg and Emden. IG Metall reported 5,000 protesters in Bremen and about 4,000 in Emden. A car convoy through Stuttgart is scheduled for 9 July.
“We are only at the beginning of comprehensive job cuts,” warned industry analyst Ferdinand Dudenhöffer. He described the current situation as “almost planless,” pointing to high German production costs and overregulation as drags on competitiveness. VDA president Hildegard Müller echoed those concerns, citing soaring energy prices and a heavy regulatory burden.
The numbers underscore the scale of the contraction. Since 2019, Germany has shed roughly 341,500 industrial jobs, with the automotive sector accounting for 125,800 of them—32,000 of those lost in the past twelve months alone. In the full year 2025, the industry lost around 50,000 positions.
Volkswagen is considering cuts of up to 100,000 jobs, with plants in Hannover, Emden, Zwickau and Neckarsulm reportedly on the chopping block. BMW is also moving toward a reduction of 10,000 roles. The financial pressure is visible in Mercedes-Benz’s first-quarter 2026 results: profit fell 17 percent to €1.43 billion. The Ifo Business Climate Index for the auto industry dropped to -21.4 points in June, signaling deepening pessimism.
IG Metall has promised an intensified labour dispute in the months ahead. Frank Sell, head of the Bosch works council, has called for a tripartite taskforce involving employers, unions and policymakers to manage the growing conflicts over working hours and cost-saving programs.
Experts see no rapid turnaround. While the metal industry eked out a 1.7 percent revenue increase in the first quarter of 2026, analysts warn that massive overcapacity in vehicle production will continue to cost jobs. A meaningful recovery is not expected for at least five to seven years, and the sector has yet to hit bottom.
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