Daimler Truck: 5,000 jobs gone! Kassel affected – what now?

Daimler Truck: 5,000 jobs gone! Kassel affected – what now?

There are troubled times for employees at Daimler Truck, as plans to cut 5,000 jobs in Germany are now official. The plant in Kassel, where around 2,700 people currently work, is also affected. A total of 400 of them work in administration. How hessenschau.de Reportedly, the announcement came as a big surprise to the works council, as concrete figures for staff reductions had not previously been on the table.

The Kassel plant produces axles and aggregate technology for both commercial vehicles and cars. The planned job cuts are expected to occur mainly through natural fluctuation and extended partial retirement. Redundancies for operational reasons are excluded until the end of 2034, as was determined in the negotiations with the works council.

Background of the austerity program

Daimler Truck wants to significantly increase profitability by 2030 with this savings program, known as “Cost Down Europe”. hna.de confirmed. The goal: a total saving of more than one billion euros. The weakness in sales is clearly reflected in the numbers - sales fell by 12 percent in 2024 and by almost 7 percent in the first half of 2025. This makes it all the more important for the company to get costs under control. IG Metall sees the job cuts as a loss of trust and has announced resistance.

However, the central question remains as to which specific positions in Kassel will actually be eliminated. The exact number of people affected has not yet been announced. The general works council has announced that certain activities, particularly in production, administration, sales and research and development, will be subject to a performance audit. This review is intended to clarify whether these tasks can possibly be relocated to other locations or outsourced.

Training offers and safety at work

Despite the indicated cuts, employees in Kassel should be given the opportunity to continue their training. The plant offers apprenticeships as mechatronics engineers and production mechanics as well as dual study programs. These measures are intended to ensure that employees are well prepared - in the face of the uncertainties of the coming years. Loud tagesschau.de Key points for socially acceptable staff reductions were also developed, which should apply at the German truck locations.

The pressure on Daimler Truck is growing because the company has to react to market developments and at the same time ensure sustainable production. CEO Karin Radström has committed to an adjusted profit margin of over 12 percent by 2030 - but it will not be easy to achieve these goals without redundancies.