Germany’s largest union on Wednesday threatened a long standoff with Thyssenkrupp Steel over its job cuts and promised to take action over Ford layoffswhich adds to the wave of labor conflicts that are plaguing the country.
IG Metall He made the threats in separate statements after both companies announced thousands of job losses as they struggle to cut costs in the face of competition from cheaper Asian rivals and a recessionary economy that has dented their profits.
“This conflict will be a marathon,” said Knut Giesler, head of the union in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. “We will use all legal measures to take our anger to the streets.”
Volkswagen too is immersed in a bitter confrontation with its workers over cost-cutting measures and the prospect of the German manufacturer’s first factory closures in its own country.
The problems of Europe’s largest economy threaten Germany’s status as an industrial power on the eve of February elections, with the chancellor’s economic record Olaf Scholz under scrutiny.
Thyssenkrupp, whose steelmaking activity dates back to the beginning of the 19th century, plans to cut 40% of its workforce in the coming years. IG Metall said it will not engage in talks unless management rules out job cuts and factory closures.
According to the newspaper Handelsblatt, Thyssenkrupp has not presented a detailed proposal for job cuts, raising doubts about the viability of the restructuring. A spokesperson for the steel unit did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.
IG Metall said separately that plans to cut thousands of jobs at Ford would mean the demise of the US carmaker’s production plant in Cologne. “It would be a gradual death,” said union representative Kerstin Klein.
