Schaeffler plans to close its site in Schwalbach am Taunus, the company announced on Tuesday. Of the 385 employees currently counted at the location, about half are expected to continue working in Frankfurt, while roughly 190 jobs will be eliminated.
Around 160 employees have already moved to Schaeffler’s Frankfurt site, works council chairman Marcel Krems told the F.A.Z. Other staff have only recently relocated to a newly leased building in Schwalbach’s Am Kronberger Hang business area. The lease runs until 2030, but the company plans to close the site by 2028 at the latest, according to Krems.
Krems said Schaeffler had invested a “mid-single-digit million amount” in the new premises. Michael Erhardt, Frankfurt’s IG Metall representative, called the closure plan economically irrational. He also said the company had not provided a clear strategy for the site when employee representatives were informed of the plans on Monday.
The relocation decision was made about two years ago, when the business still operated as Vitesco. Continental spun off its powertrain division under that name in 2021, and Schaeffler acquired Vitesco in 2024. The move from Schwalbach’s former shared premises followed Continental’s announcement that it would leave the town. Schaeffler signed the lease for the new building in spring 2025.
Schaeffler attributed its planned nationwide reduction of 2,660 jobs to challenges facing the automotive industry, including declining demand for combustion-engine vehicles and a slower-than-expected ramp-up of electric mobility. The company has also cited above-average personnel costs as a reason for concentrating job cuts in Germany.
The exact roles to be eliminated in the Rhine-Main region have not yet been communicated, Krems said. He warned that cuts could potentially affect employees who have already moved to Frankfurt as well as those still in Schwalbach. He also raised concerns that the Frankfurt site in Gateway Gardens does not have the workshops and laboratories needed by many employees. Around 300 of the 385 staff are developers, he said.
Schaeffler announced earlier reductions after acquiring Vitesco, with 2,800 positions reviewed as part of a plan to realize synergies. In Schwalbach, 129 severance agreements and phased-retirement arrangements were subsequently negotiated, Krems said. The company now plans to eliminate a further roughly 190 positions through a voluntary program. Schaeffler also plans to cut 800 jobs in other European countries.
A closure would end the remaining presence in Schwalbach of VDO, the Frankfurt-founded supplier that moved its headquarters to the Taunus town in the 1970s. VDO later became part of Siemens, and Siemens VDO was acquired by Continental in 2007.
Sources: FAZ.