Status: 02.10.2023, 13:11 p.m.
By: Amy Walker
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The toy manufacturer Playmobil has been in crisis for months. Now it is known: In Germany alone, 370 jobs will be cut. Worldwide, there are even more.
Zirndorf – It has been known for months that the situation at Playmobil, whose headquarters are in Zirndorf near Nuremberg, is anything but rosy. Now it becomes clear what is true about the rumors. The Playmobil parent company is cutting around 700 jobs worldwide, including around 370 in Germany. This was announced by the Horst Brandstätter Group on Monday. The job cuts correspond to a share of 17 percent worldwide and 16 percent of the total workforce in Germany.
Playmobil: Two bad years in a row
"This was decided by the company's management after completing a comprehensive investigation of all business areas and taking into account business development and current economic challenges," a spokesperson said. According to the information, the Playmobil parent company recorded a drop in sales and profits in the past two financial years.
It had already become known on Friday that the Playmobil manufacturer wants to outsource its mold making and cut 74 jobs. Mold making is no longer one of the company's core competencies and has lost importance, the company had announced.
Serious allegations against Playmobil leadership in the summer
In July, it became known that there had been a fierce dispute between the works council and management. In a letter from the works council that became public, massive accusations were voiced: "With the way the company has been run by our patriarch Horst Brandstätter since his death, you are trampling on the legacy," the seven-page letter read. In the meantime, "fear and humiliation are the order of the day".
A shelf with Playmobil toys in a Karstadt store in Hattingen. © Thomas Imo/photothek.net
Mothers who come back from parental leave would be "bullied until they quit". There was also the accusation that the collective agreement negotiated in July 2022 had not yet been implemented. A spokesperson for the company described these allegations to IPPEN. MEDIA at the time as "baseless".
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Playmobil has been an integral part of children's rooms for decades
Beyond the quarrels, the company can look back on a decades-long history: The market launch of Playmobil took place in 1974 - since then, the toys can be found in many children's rooms. In 2015, the turning point followed: The company patriarch Horst Brandstätter died and left Playmobil a fortune worth billions.
After his death, a double foundation came into play: a charitable foundation and a corporate foundation in which the most important employees are represented. At the end of 2016, Steffen Höpfner took over as CEO. In the past financial year 2021/2022, Playmobil struggled with declining revenues. The job cuts that have now become known suggest that the 2022/2023 financial year did not meet expectations.
With material from dpa
