Union Sweeps Works Council Elections as German Manufacturers Slash Thousands of Jobs
Published on 06/17/2026 at 07:34 | Redaktion boerse-global.de
Works councils across Germany held their 2026 elections this spring, and the results gave union candidates a decisive mandate. In the Weser-Elbe region alone, the IG Metall reported that more than 200 seats were filled across over 30 companies, with roughly 85 percent going to trade union representatives. The figures mark a strong showing for organised labour at a time when many industrial employers are cutting staff or shifting production abroad.
One of the companies that has kept dialogue open is Pollmann, an automotive supplier based in Karlstein. In mid-June, its works council hosted an information fair on the factory grounds, drawing around 500 employees. Works council chairwoman Michaela Schön, alongside managing director Robert Stubenberger and HR chief Helmut Rössl-Grobbauer, said the turnout showed workers valued the chance for direct conversation. The event was designed as a platform for staff to ask questions and exchange views with management and their elected representatives.
Not every workplace enjoys that kind of climate. At the machine builder Siempelkamp in Krefeld, 127 positions are at risk — roughly a third of the workforce. The company is also considering leaving the employer association. Its subsidiary Pallmann in Zweibrücken faces an even steeper blow: 129 of 282 jobs on the chopping block. Those cuts come on top of the 86 roles eliminated at the Krefeld site last year.
Thermo Fisher, the lab-equipment specialist, plans to relocate mass-spectrometer production from Bremen to Brno in the Czech Republic. According to the IG Metall, about 100 of the site’s 520 employees are affected. The works council there had wanted to meet with local politicians, but management prohibited the gathering. A particularly galling detail for employees: the Bremen site recently posted roughly €300 million in profit on €700 million in revenue. The works council fears the entire plant may ultimately be at risk.
Uncertainty is also spreading through Sick, the sensor manufacturer. Around 2,000 employees turned out for works meetings in Waldkirch, Reute and Freiburg in mid-June, rattled by unclear signals about the company’s direction. At DHL’s Leipzig hub, the DPVKOM union accuses management of covert staff reduction. Official headcount fell from more than 7,000 at the start of 2024 to just over 6,000 by early 2026 — a drop the company attributes to natural turnover and lower parcel volumes. The works council argues it amounts to a structured downsizing.
Amid the gloom, there were moments of celebration. The works council at software giant SAP marked its 20th anniversary in June. Established in 2006 as the last employee representative body inside a DAX-listed company, the council now faces challenges from the integration of artificial intelligence and ongoing cost-saving programmes.
In Varel, the works council of St. Johannes Hospital voiced support for a planned health campus that would involve cooperation with the Friesland Kliniken, saying the concept can safeguard both patient care and local jobs.
For the unions, the results of the 2026 works council elections offer a clear message: even as factories shrink and production moves east, workers are turning to their elected representatives in greater numbers. Whether that strength translates into saved positions will depend on the battles still to come.
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