Enlarge image
Protest in front of the Bosch plant in Arnstadt, Thuringia: "Relocations to low-wage countries are increasing"
Photo: Martin Schutt / dpa
Several thousand Bosch employees protested today at three locations against the job cuts.
This was announced by the IG Metall union, which had called for the rallies in Bühl in Baden-Württemberg, in Munich and in Arnstadt in Thuringia.
Around 3,000 employees are said to have come to the demonstration in Arnstadt alone.
The location in Thuringia with one hundred employees is to be closed by the end of 2022.
The plant in Munich with 250 employees is also threatened with closure.
According to IG Metall, most of the production is to be relocated to the Czech Republic.
In Bühl, around 700 full-time positions are to be cut by 2025, "socially acceptable," as the company says.
Slightly less than half of these positions are to be relocated to Eastern Europe.
Electric drives for vehicles are manufactured in Bühl - IG Metall therefore argues that the location is set up for the future.
Some jobs are to be relocated to low-wage countries
"Relocations to low-wage countries are increasing, not just at Bosch," said the district manager of IG Metall Baden-Württemberg, Roman Zitzelsberger.
"That has nothing to do with transformation, it is aimed solely at maximizing profits on the back of the employees." Anyone who does not shy away from downsizing and location closings and questioning social and collective bargaining standards "will feel the massive resistance of IG Metall."
Bosch managing director Filiz Albrecht said that Bosch is aware of its corporate responsibility.
She also expressed "understanding" for the concern about jobs.
Among other things, Bosch is a supplier to the automotive industry and is therefore directly affected by the climate requirements of the European Union.
The Chairman of the General Works Council of Bosch Mobility Solutions, Frank Sell, said: "Bosch divides the workforce into winners and losers of structural change."
jlk / dpa / AFP