Massive layoffs continue in Europe in 2024. Persistent inflation,…

Persistent inflation, the impact of the war in Ukraine, declining demand, uncertain economic prospects continue to force European companies to cut staff or freeze employment.

In the automotive industry, the German automotive supplier Bosch announced at the beginning of the year that it will eliminate 1,200 jobs in the software development division by the end of 2026, writes Reuters. In February, the company added that it would also cut 3,500 jobs in its home appliances division. These in addition to reducing the staff at the two factories in Germany by 1,500 positions until 2025.

Continental announced in turn that it will reduce its research and development staff in the automotive division by 1,750 positions by the end of 2025.

According to eletrek.co, the big German car suppliers are facing high costs related to the transition to electric cars and a “slow demand”, they are looking to make available thousands of employees, even up to 20% of the total number in some cases, in the years following.

ZF Friedrichshafen, Germany’s second largest supplier after Bosch, has announced that it will eliminate up to 12,000 positions in the worst-case scenario by 2030.

High inflation, expensive raw materials and dramatically rising energy costs are all reasons for companies’ decisions.

German manufacturers are generally announcing layoffs as Germany’s export-focused industry faces a global slowdown and high inflation.

Other automotive companies that have announced layoffs include Forvia, Polestar, Stellantis, Volvo.

As for European banks, with the exception of Credit Suisse, they refrained from deep layoffs last year. The situation is different this year, however, notes fnlondon.com.

Whether they are trying to revitalize their share price, free up capital for buybacks, keep up with technology, restructure or simply keep costs under control, the big European banks are cutting jobs this year and cut the bonuses for the remaining ones.

The Italian bank Banco BPM announced that it will eliminate 1,600 jobs, Deutsche Bank will lay off 3,500 employees, Societe Generale from France will eliminate approximately 900 jobs at its Paris headquarters.

In the industrial and engineering sector, Nibe Industier, the Swedish manufacturer of heating solutions, eliminated 340 positions, Sandvik, the Swedish manufacturer of equipment for the mining sector, announced its intention to lay off about 1,100 employees, according to Reuters.

In the retail and consumer goods sector, Swiss chocolate maker Barry Callebaut is preparing to cut around 2,500 jobs. Other companies with layoff plans are H&M, Sainsbury’s and Unilever.

In the tech sector, Ericsson, SAP, Telefonica and Vodafone are considering layoffs.

In 2023, almost all economic sectors in Europe were affected by layoffs. Persistent inflation, interest rate hikes, unpredictable economic prospects have led companies to massively eliminate jobs.