German automotive workers face the threat of losing their jobs as the industry undergoes massive disruption over the next twelve years, according to research commissioned by labour union IG Metall.
The research pinpoints the transition to electric mobility (‘e-mobility’) as putting at risk thousands of jobs in the German automotive industry that depend on current technologies. In particular, the research says powertrain manufacturing will be worst hit. According to Bloomberg, the research says electrification will reduce the importance of internal combustion engines, an area where German carmakers have built their reputation.
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As many as 75,000 of the existing 210,000 positions working on engines and transmissions will be lost by 2030 – even as electrification adds 25,000 positions, the union said, according to Bloomberg which said the study was conducted by Fraunhofer Institute for Industrial Engineering.
“The challenge is large, but can be mastered if the right framework conditions are created now,” IG Metall Chairman Joerg Hofmann said at a press briefing in Frankfurt, Bloomberg reported. “Politicians and companies must now develop strategies to shape this transformation.”
The research presented by IG Metall assumes a baseline scenario that by 2030, a quarter of cars will be fully electric, with plug-in hybrids accounting for a 15 percent market share and 60 percent being powered by gasoline or diesel engines that are more fuel-efficient than today.
