German railway
The rail freight transport subsidiary has to cut significantly more jobs
The job cuts at Deutsche Bahn’s freight transport subsidiary are greater than previously known. A total of 5,000 jobs are to be lost in order to get back into the black.
The ailing freight transport division of Deutsche Bahn will have to cut significantly more jobs than previously assumed. “The current economic forecasts mean that we expect a loss of 5,000 jobs by 2029,” said DB Cargo boss Sigrid Nikutta to the German Press Agency. This increases the previously expected job cuts as a result of the transformation of DB Cargo.
So far, only the reduction of 2,300 jobs has been agreed with the works councils. A large part of the additional jobs will be eliminated in administration, but the operational area will also be affected.
Pension, job change and exit program
Nikutta wants to achieve this primarily through natural fluctuation. “Around 1,000 employees will have left the company as early as 2024, essentially because the baby boomer generation of employees is now retiring,” she said.
Around 650 colleagues have already received new job offers within the railway group. A further 700 employees would leave the company as part of a voluntary exit program. From a cargo perspective, this reduces the remaining need to cut jobs over the next five years to around 2,650 jobs.
DB Cargo must be in the black by 2026
The company has been making heavy losses for years. According to a decision by the EU Commission, these will no longer be allowed to be offset by the parent company in the future. DB Cargo now has until 2026 to get out of the loss zone.
That’s why the company, the railway and transport union (EVG) and the works councils have been struggling for months to come up with a far-reaching savings program. In October, all sides agreed to cut an initial 2,300 jobs. However, Nikutta had always emphasized that other jobs could be affected. According to DB Cargo, it has around 31,000 employees.
dpa
Source: Stern
