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Zeiss Göttingen: 130 job cuts – union fights for jobs!
Zeiss in Göttingen is planning to cut 130 jobs by 2030. IG Metall and the works council stand up for the employees.
Zeiss Göttingen: 130 job cuts – union fights for jobs!
The Zeiss factory in Göttingen sounds the alarm: How Göttinger Tageblatt reports, will be around in the next five years 130 jobs available. This corresponds to a third of the total 400 employees at the Königsallee location. The reason for these drastic measures lies in the unfavorable order situation and the planned conversion of the system.
Works council chairman Torsten Dreyer and IG Metall are alarmed and are working on a strategy to preserve as many jobs as possible. “The information about the staff cuts came like a slap in the face,” said Dreyer. While the partial reduction was a few years ago, when 300 employees were transferred to Jena and Oberkochen between 2015 and 2021, the current state of affairs is particularly worrying. According to the plans drawn up by the management, the number of employees should fall to 270 by 2030.
Background to the job cuts
The situation at Zeiss is part of a larger trend in German industry, where many companies are forced to cut jobs due to reduced demand. According to ZDF, 70,000 jobs have already been cut in industry in 2023, and the unemployment rate is expected to continue to rise in 2025.
In this context, the electronics group Carl Zeiss in Aalen is also planning to cut jobs due to noticeable purchasing reluctance. Especially in the eyeglass lens industry, in which Zeiss is active, falling demand is leading to a decline in production capacity. The head of the Zeiss Vision GmbH works council described the announcement as a “slap in the face” for the employees.
Future perspectives and reactions
For Zeiss in Göttingen, it is still unclear whether certain production areas will be closed. The plans to regulate the workforce reductions should be carried out through an operational change, which may also include restrictions or closures of parts of the company. IG Metall secretary Sascha Rossmann is surprised and calls for the situation to be clarified quickly: “There is a lot at stake and we want the employees to stay at the site.”
Discussions between management and employee representatives should take place promptly, with the aim of making the process socially acceptable and avoiding dismissals for operational reasons. “Swift action is required here so that the industrial dispute does not end badly,” Rossmann continued.
Over 46,500 employees work for Zeiss worldwide, and the company is struggling with the current market situation not only in Göttingen, but also at other locations such as Aalen. The pressure on the industry is growing and uncertainty among employees remains high.