Bosch to cut 5,500 jobs, two-thirds of it in Germany

German automotive supplier Bosch plans to cut 5,500 jobs amid a growing crisis in the automotive industry, a spokeswoman said on Friday. She said that more than two-thirds of these, some 3,800 jobs, will be in Germany, as the company sees a further “need for adjustment.” The figures are based on plans, but exact numbers will be negotiated with employee representatives, and talks are set to begin.

The Cross-Domain Computing Solutions division, which is responsible for assistance systems and automated driving, for example, is most affected. By the end of 2027, 3,500 jobs in the division will be lost worldwide, around half of them in Germany.

Mostly in Germany

According to the works council, this involves the sites in Leonberg, Abstatt, Renningen, and Schwieberdingen in the southern state of Baden-Württemberg and Hildesheim in Lower Saxony.

By 2032, around 750 further jobs will be cut at the Hildesheim plant, where Bosch manufactures products for electromobility, 600 of them already by the end of 2026.

Cost-cutting plans are also in place for the division that produces steering systems for cars and trucks. Between 2027 and 2030, up to 1,300 jobs will be cut at the site in Schwäbisch Gmünd, also in Baden-Württemberg. This is more than a third of the workforce there.

Earlier on, Bosch already announced 7,000 job losses, but they were mainly situated in other non-automotive divisions of the German industry giant, like electric household and do-it-yourself machinery. Worldwide, Bosch had 429,000 people employed at the end of last year; 134,000 are based in Germany.

Automotive industry in crisis

The supplier attributed the downsizing to the crisis in the automotive industry. “Global vehicle production will stagnate this year at around 93 million units, if not decline slightly compared to the previous year,” Bosch said.

A slight recovery at best is expected in the coming year amid considerable overcapacity in the industry. Competitive and price pressure has also intensified. According to Bosch, manufacturers need significantly fewer parts for electric vehicles, for example, which is leading to overstaffing.

Moreover, the market for future technology is not developing as Bosch expected, with demand for driver assistance systems and solutions for automated driving falling significantly short.

The company said manufacturers are currently postponing or canceling many such projects. In the steering division, Bosch is now struggling with increased competition and plans in response to bundle functions and reduce costs.

Europe is suffering

“In Europe, our activities are competing with suppliers that are producing in countries with a reduced cost structure, and that gives them obvious advantages,” commented Bosch.

Other German automotive suppliers, such as Continental, Schaeffler, and ZF, have announced job cuts in recent months. In France, Michelin and Walor are following suit.

Also, the OEMs are in trouble. The closure of the Audi factory in Brussels has already been decided. Volkswagen is talking about the possible closure of three factories in Germany and 10,000 job losses. The first strikes of the VW workforce are expected to start next week.

Ford of Europe is considering some 4,000 further redundancies after it had already decided to cut 3,800 jobs earlier. This comprised a severe downsizing of its R&D activities in Europe.

Further cost-cutting

At the same time, Bosch foresees reducing the working hours of another 10,000 of its employees. These are currently working 38 to 40 hours per week, and the company wants to reduce this to 35 hours by March 2025. The salaries should be reduced by the same proportion.

The Bosch Engineering subsidiary has already reduced working time to 37 hours per week (from 40) and wants to follow the same movement to 36 hours.