Mercedes-Benz prüft Werksschließungen in Deutschland, Arbeit zu teuer

Mercedes-Benz is considering potential plant closures in Germany and further relocations of production abroad. According to an interview published on the company intranet and viewed by Handelsblatt, the management board has decided to stop all further investments in German locations. Labor director Britta Seeger stated that the company is now forced to concretely examine which German sites remain affordable, noting that while the manufacturer wants to avoid closures at all costs, the option must now be pursued more specifically.

The company is currently engaged in negotiations with employee representatives to reduce costs, though no agreement has been reached after several months. Der Standard Wirtschaft reports that the board is seeking lower personnel costs, specifically requesting longer working hours without compensatory pay and cuts to special payments. Handelsblatt reports that management aims for the hourly rate of work to become cheaper, as the company views German labor costs as high compared to international locations.

Brief written by urgent.news from Der Standard Wirtschaft, Handelsblatt — 2 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.