After a plan to merge its steel business with that of Indian group Tata Steel collapsed, German industrial conglomerate ThyssenKrupp announced on 10 May that some 6,000 jobs would be cut by 2022, of which 4,000 would come from its sites in Germany. As part of a principle agreement with metal sector trade union IG Metall, reached overnight between 10 and 11 May, the company, which employs some 160,000 people across the globe, committed to avoiding dismissals on economic grounds as far as possible. A spokesperson for IG Metall in North Rhine-Westphalia tells Planet Labor that the union would like to obtain the same guarantees as those given ahead of the planned merger with Tata.
6000 jobs to be cut. ThyssenKrupp had two major plans: to merge its steel operations with those of its Indian rival Tata Steel and to split the group into two separate companies. However neither of these will come to pass. On Friday, chief executive Guido Kerkhoff, explained that ThyssenKrupp and Tata Steel did not expect to get approval from the European Commission for their joint venture plan and were not prepared to make further concessions in order to get the green light.
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