Schaeffler announces further reductions of 3,460 jobs in Europe, closure of four locations in Germany

Following the completion of the restructuring measures announced in November 2024 and the conclusion of 1,800 partial retirement agreements in early October, Schaeffler has announced another cost reduction program. The goal is to reduce overcapacity, adjust development capacity, lower personnel costs, and reduce organizational complexity.

As part of the program’s implementation, a net total of 3,460 positions are to be reduced in the Europe region. Approximately 50 percent of the positions affected are in production, 30 percent in research and development, and 20 percent in other functional areas. The cuts will affect 16 locations in the Europe region. The plans include the closure of five sites, four of them in Germany.

These include the plant in Dortmund, which currently employs 430 people, and the Morbach site with 160 employees; both belong to the Powertrain & Chassis division and manufacture products for internal combustion engines.

In addition, plans are in place to discontinue operations at the Berlin site, which currently employs about 270 people, and to close the Schwalbach site. A large portion of these approximately 385 employees is expected to transfer to the Schaeffler site in Frankfurt. In total, around 190 positions will be affected by the reduction.

In addition, plans have been made to discontinue toolmaking operations at the Höchstadt site and to make adjustments to special machinery manufacturing at the Erlangen and Schweinfurt sites.

Furthermore, capacity and structural adjustments are planned at other locations in Germany – including Herzogenaurach, Bühl, Höchstadt, Nürnberg and Regensburg.

Outside Germany, production and development capacities at the French locations in Haguenau and Toulouse, as well as at the locations in Skalica and Kysuce in Slovakia, are to be adjusted. The Herstal production site in Belgium, with approximately 15 employees, will be closed. Detailed information regarding the plans at the respective locations will be presented at local staff meetings.

The planned reduction of 2,660 positions in Germany means that, relative to the core workforce – which consisted of 31,957 employees as of September 30, 2026 – approximately nine percent of existing positions will be reduced by 2028. When considering the job reductions resulting from legacy programs and the 1,800 partial-retirement agreements already signed, the percentage mentioned above increases to approximately 18 percent.