The Essen-based chemical company Evonik plans to cut around 3,200 jobs by the end of 2029, the company announced. Of those, 2,150 positions will be eliminated in Germany. Next year, Evonik will also exit its loss-making polyester business, costing another 350 jobs.
CEO Christian Kullmann justified the savings plans with the uncertain global political situation and persistently weak economic growth. “At the same time, international competition is becoming increasingly fierce,” he added. The company emphasized that the job cuts would be carried out in a socially responsible manner.
Alexander Bercht of the IG BCE union warned: “What is clear is that employees must not bear the burden of a difficult market situation alone.” On the positive side, there would still be no compulsory redundancies. The relocation of a significant number of jobs abroad had been prevented. However, ever-new savings programs did not create sustainable future prospects.
Ongoing savings programs already foresee the elimination of around 2,800 jobs. Operations with about 3,500 employees at the Marl and Wesseling sites were transferred to the wholly owned subsidiary Syneqt, which may be sold. At the end of March, Evonik employed around 30,600 people, down from over 31,000 a year earlier.
The exit from the polyester business affects the sites in Witten, Marl, and Shanghai. The division has been posting losses for years, and the step is unavoidable. Evonik’s shares lost more than three percent and were among the biggest losers in the MDax.
The German chemical industry is in one of its worst crises in 30 years. Weak demand, high energy prices, price pressure from Asia, and geopolitical tensions are weighing on the sector. The German Chemical Industry Association (VCI) warned of a collapse of the third-largest industrial sector. Other companies are also cutting jobs: Wacker plans to eliminate more than 1,500 positions by the end of 2027, and Lanxess is cutting 550 jobs, two-thirds of them in Germany.
Source: www.spiegel.de
