Siemens to cut some 6,000 jobs worldwide, including 2,850 in Germany

Engineering giant Siemens said on Tuesday it is cutting around 6,000 jobs worldwide, including 2,850 in Germany.

The bulk of the cuts are coming from the automation business, which is part of the Digital Industries (DI) division. The electric vehicle charging business is also affected.

Chief executive Roland Busch had announced job cuts in the low-to-mid four-digit range in autumn, and now there are concrete figures. Most of the cuts will be made by September 2027.

The company has been suffering from high inventory levels at customers and dealers, which has led to weak demand and poor capacity utilization.

Turnover in the automation business has recently fallen significantly. So far, however, Siemens is expecting an improvement in the current year.

Overall, the business at the conglomerate is solid. In the first quarter, it posted a profit of €2.1 billion ($2.3 billion)

Changed conditions in key markets, notably Germany, made capacity adjustments necessary, Siemens said.

“The German market in particular has been in decline for two years. Capacities in Germany must therefore be adjusted,” it said.

Overall, however, the number of employees in Germany will “tend to remain constant,” as Siemens is recruiting in other, growing areas.

The works council criticized the layoffs.

“We have no understanding for the planned measures at DI and are surprised and annoyed by the massive number of planned redundancies,” said Birgit Steinborn, chairwoman of the General Works Council and deputy chairwoman of the Supervisory Board.

The IG Metall union’s deputy chairman, Jürgen Kerner, who also sits on the Siemens Supervisory Board, also blasted the plans.

“Transformation is not achieved through downsizing, but through positive change – in other words, primarily further development and training,” he said.