BERLIN, May 19 (Reuters) – German auto supplier ZF has opted to keep production of electric motors in-house but hundreds more job cuts will be needed to secure competitiveness, the company said on Tuesday.
After investing heavily in new technologies, European carmakers and suppliers have faced a slower-than-expected uptake of electric vehicles, although demand is now picking up.
As part of a broader overhaul of its business, including 7,600 job cuts agreed last October, ZF assessed together with employee representatives whether to retain its own production of electric motors and inverters or purchase these key components externally.
ZF decided to keep production but warned additional workforce reductions would be needed, with forced redundancies to be avoided wherever possible.
A spokesperson said hundreds of jobs would be cut at ZF’s sites in Schweinfurt and Auerbach in southern Germany, where over 1,000 people are employed.
(Reporting by Ilona Wissenbach and Rachel MoreEditing by Ludwig Burger)
