Siemens, one of Germany’s biggest industrial conglomerates, has announced a tough cost-cutting programme that would see 5,600 jobs disappear in its Digital Industries division.
On March 18, the company said that amounted to almost 1 in 11 of the 68,000 positions in the division that primarily offered industrial automation solutions. Another 450 posts would be cut in its electric-vehicle charger business.
Almost 3,000 of the jobs to be cut were located in Germany. Siemens said it intended to reduce staff numbers without letting employees go, relying on what it called natural fluctuations instead.
Most of the Digital Industries division’s factories were located in the South German state of Bavaria.
The Digital Industries division has been a core part of the Siemens group and contributed about 30 per cent of total profits of €11.4 billion in 2024.
The automation business, though, has been hit with decreasing sales and profits in recent quarters.
The firm’s other divisions were Smart Infrastructure, Mobility and Healthineers (healthcare technology).
The electric-vehicle charging business has been suffering from intense competition and reduced demand for charging stations as the EV boom of past years has slowed down.
Siemens said it intended to carve out the charging business at a later date.
“In this economic landscape we have to further increase our competitiveness,” Siemens board member Cedrik Neike told journalists.
Siemens’ automation business was focused too heavily on China and Germany as well as on the automobile sector, he continued.
The company said it now wanted to increase its footprint in other Asian markets including India as well as the US.
Moreover, the industrial giant intended to strengthen its position in the aviation, aerospace and defence sectors.
“We need to become more equilibrated regionally and attract a broader customer base,” Neike said.
German employee representatives have criticised Siemens over the cost-cutting measures.
“We have no tolerance for the planned measures and are surprised and angry about the massive number of jobs to be cut,” said Birgit Steinborn, chairwoman of Siemens’ Works Council.
