Job cuts help Rheinmetall: Conti employees switch to weapons manufacturer

Job cuts help Rheinmetall
Conti employees switch to weapons manufacturer

14.06.2024, 11:56 a.m.

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Job cuts are intended to be a win-win situation: While the automotive industry is cutting jobs, arms manufacturers are looking for staff. Some of the Continental employees affected are now finding new jobs at Rheinmetall. Specialists from other suppliers are also expected to produce weapons in the future.

The large-scale job cuts in the automotive industry could be a boon for the flourishing arms industry. Rheinmetall wants to take on employees from the supplier Continental who are affected by the job cuts there. This was announced by the two companies. In a first step, up to 100 Conti employees are to move from Gifhorn in Lower Saxony to the Rheinmetall site in Unterlüß, which is also around 55 kilometers away in Lower Saxony. Rheinmetall wants to produce artillery ammunition, explosives and components for rocket artillery in a new plant there. Around 500 new jobs are planned.

According to information from the “Handelsblatt”, it is not only skilled workers for production who can switch: According to Conti circles, Rheinmetall also wants to recruit software experts. Continental is also cutting jobs in the software sector. Employees from Lindau on Lake Constance, for example, could benefit from this, as they could move to the Rheinmetall site in Stockach on Lake Constance, where the defense company develops electronic and optical systems, among other things.

Continental is not the only supplier that could help Rheinmetall with personnel. Bosch, ZF and Mahle, which are also cutting jobs, are also in talks with the weapons manufacturer, according to the report. A ZF spokesman confirmed: “Since ZF announced that it would end production at the Gelsenkirchen site by the end of 2024, several well-known companies have approached us with a need for well-qualified skilled workers – including those that are experiencing a special economic boom in connection with the ‘turning point’.”

Up to 160,000 jobs in the automotive industry will become redundant

While the arms industry is growing as a result of the war in Ukraine, the automotive industry has begun to cut jobs on a massive scale as a result of electromobility. Since significantly fewer staff are needed to produce electric cars, up to 160,000 jobs are likely to be lost at car manufacturers and suppliers alone. Continental is cutting thousands of jobs in its automotive division.

Conti employees are informed internally about their opportunities at Rheinmetall and given training for them. Continental has also already made agreements with Siemens Mobility and Stiebel Eltron regarding employee transfers.

Thanks to the arms boom, Rheinmetall was able to increase its operating profit in the first quarter by 60 percent to 134 million euros. Sales grew by 16 percent to just under 1.6 billion euros. The order backlog, including expected calls from framework contracts and customer agreements, rose by around 43 percent, and the order backlog climbed to a record level of 40 billion euros. Rheinmetall expects sales to increase by 40 percent for the year as a whole.