MAHLE is accelerating the restructuring of the Group. Last year, MAHLE had already initiated comprehensive cost-saving and restructuring programs against the background of technological change in the automotive industry and a challenging market environment.
The major slowdown in the international markets and persistently low customer demand because of the coronavirus pandemic have yet again significantly increased the urgency to take action. MAHLE does not expect the vehicle markets to return to precrisis levels for several years. At the same time, it remains essential to drive forward the technological transformation. MAHLE has therefore thoroughly evaluated its business units, regions, and locations and identified global excess capacities of 7,600 jobs. The Group will now be discussing with the relevant employee representatives which adjustment measures can be implemented.
“We’re currently facing a crisis, the like of which we’ve never experienced before,” says Dr. Jörg Stratmann, Chairman of the MAHLE Management Board and CEO. “Despite the economic challenges that this entails, we must continue to drive forward and invest in our future topics as part of the transformation so that we remain competitive with the right know-how and product range. So it’s now particularly important that we maintain our efforts to reduce costs consistently and focus even further on our strategic goals. The capacity adjustments already implemented are not sufficient.” Of the globally identified excess capacities, Europe accounts for around 3,700 jobs, of which roughly 2,000 are in Germany.
“Such measures are extremely difficult for us. But they are part of our global responsibility for the sustainable positioning of MAHLE. We will shortly start talks with the relevant employee representatives to discuss the measures in detail and plan their socially responsible implementation,” says Anke Felder, Corporate Executive Vice President Human Resources and member of the Management Board of the MAHLE Group.
SOURCE: MAHLE
