The automotive supplier Continental wants to merge its automotive locations in Hesse and cut a total of 1,200 jobs. The Schwalbach and Wetzlar locations would be closed by the end of 2025 and work would gradually be relocated to Frankfurt and Babenhausen, the company announced on Tuesday. Some of the workforce should then move. The remaining positions are to be eliminated in a “socially acceptable” manner.
Jobs are also to be eliminated or relocated in Frankfurt and Babenhausen. In total, 2,300 of the approximately 8,000 employees in the Rhine-Main area are affected, of which 1,100 are due to move. Both administration and research and development are affected. “With these measures we are improving our cost structure and, in particular, strengthening collaboration in research and development,” said Automotive board member Philipp von Hirschheydt, according to the statement.
Frankfurt, already the headquarters of the automotive division, is to be expanded into a competence center for vehicle software and architectures, and Babenhausen is to become a location purely for displays and cockpits. The job creation is part of the consolidation program for the weak division announced in February. 7,150 jobs are to be eliminated worldwide and locations are to be merged. As a result, administrative costs should fall by 400 million euros from 2025 and spending on research and development should fall to less than ten percent of sales by 2028.