Firm bankruptcies surge 6.5% as Germany's industrial job losses accelerate
13.06.2026 - 09:13:12 | boerse-global.de
Fresh data from a Forsa survey paints a grim picture for Germany’s industrial backbone. Insolvencies among companies rose 6.5 percent, and roughly 15,000 manufacturing jobs vanish every month. Managers are particularly vulnerable: their unemployment count climbed 14 percent within a single year.
The numbers come as thousands of workers took to the streets on Friday. In Berlin, around 1,700 demonstrators marched to the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs, while the IG Metall trade union counted some 8,500 participants in Völklingen. Their message was clear – the steel industry is gasping under cheap imports, US tariffs, and weak demand, and they want politicians to act.
Hardest hit: Thyssenkrupp Steel Europe
At the centre of the storm is Thyssenkrupp Steel Europe, which has announced plans to cut 11,000 jobs. Raw steel output for 2025 fell to 34.1 million tonnes, the lowest level since 2009. Union leaders are demanding reliable conditions for climate-friendly production, targeting what they see as two policy failures: a temporary industrial electricity price and the risk of a watered-down EU emissions trading system.
The trouble stretches beyond steel. In Kassel, the Alstom plant faces an uncertain future. Management held a works meeting on Friday with the 930 employees, but no concrete results emerged. For roughly six weeks, the leadership has been in talks with an unidentified potential buyer – industry insiders speculate the bidder could be a defence company. The site is bleeding red ink and has missed production targets. Although order books are filled for 2026 and 2027, planning certainty disappears after 2028. The works council is pressing for a decision to keep locomotive manufacturing alive, while material shortages complicate day-to-day operations.
AI reshapes the workforce
Meanwhile, the technological shift adds another layer of pressure. An ifo Institute survey shows that around 20 percent of companies actively using artificial intelligence consider it easily possible to replace university graduates with less-qualified staff supported by AI. For experienced skilled workers, the figure stands at 15 percent.
Currently, 54.5 percent of German firms use AI. The transformation is most dramatic in IT, where 83 percent of AI adopters expect efficiency gains in software development. Yet more than half of providers foresee declining demand for traditional developers by 2028. Global giants such as Meta and Amazon have already launched waves of redundancies; Standard Chartered eliminated roughly 7,000 roles.
Political pressure mounts
The crisis has reached the chancellery. After a social-partner dialogue on Wednesday, IG Metall called for well-thought-out reforms. The CDU’s business council criticised the talks for producing no results and demanded binding decisions at the coalition committee meeting on July 1. BDI President Leibinger warned of massive risks from disrupted transport routes and trade conflicts, urging a comprehensive overall strategy for Germany as an industrial location.
