After the sale to the Genting Group, the shipyards in the northeast finally seemed to be in calm waters. But since Corona the sea has been rough again. After years of growth, it is now back to short-time work, layoffs and location closings.
The IG Metall coast calls on the federal and state governments to do everything to preserve shipbuilding as the industrial backbone of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. "It's about the industrial core of the country with around 2800 jobs with good collective bargaining conditions," said IG Metall district manager Daniel Friedrich. The financially troubled MV Werften needed state support in order to survive the corona-related emergency and to stay on the market.
The union gives preference to a continuation of the shipyards under the previous Asian parent company Genting, which has proven to be a reliable partner in the past. "But if that is not possible for reasons arising from the restructuring of Genting Hong Kong, we must also have alternatives in terms of industrial policy," emphasized Friedrich. He sees politics as having an obligation to open up new fields of activity, for example in the construction of platforms for offshore energy systems or more environmentally friendly cruise ships.
Guarantees of 500 million euros
The collapse of cruise shipping as a result of the corona pandemic had meanwhile brought the construction of new ships at the MV shipyards in Wismar, Rostock and Stralsund to a standstill. The conglomerate Genting, which took over the shipyards in 2016 to build cruise ships for its own needs, could no longer secure the financing, the majority of shipbuilders had to work on short-time work.
The shipyards are therefore trying to come under the protective umbrella of the Federal Economic Stabilization Fund. The completion of two started ships and the continued existence of the shipyards are to be secured with credit guarantees. It is about loan guarantees amounting to around 500 million euros, some of which have already been approved. A final decision on the majority of the amount is expected by the end of March.
In Stralsund, 700 people are currently working at the former Volkswerft.
(Photo: picture alliance / dpa / dpa-Zentralbild)
Stralsund location on the brink
It was only on Tuesday that the shipyard management informed the employees that up to 1200, or a good third of the jobs, would be cut. The adjustment of the workforce to the existing work is a prerequisite for the federal government to release the remaining funds, it said. In the coming weeks, negotiations are to be held on socially acceptable job cuts and the establishment of a transfer company.
Before the talks began, IG Metall reiterated its call for all shipbuilding companies to be retained. The shipyard in Stralsund could be most at risk. As the IG Metall managing director Guido Fröschke, who is responsible for the region, said, there are plans to only keep a construction department with a core team if there are no follow-up orders. At the shipyard in Stralsund, which last had 700 employees, the ice-going luxury cruise ship Endeavor 1 is being built, but is about to be completed.
In Stralsund, 700 people are currently working at the former Volkswerft.