IG Metall warns of urgent need to combat deindustrialisation in Europe

Jürgen Kerner, vice-president of Germany’s largest trade union, IG Metall, warned that Europe’s former industrial heartland must act urgently to overcome economic turmoil and prevent deindustrialisation, which has already led to thousands of job cuts.

IG Metall represents 2.2 million workers in the automobile, machinery, steel, and electronics industries. Numerous companies have announced layoffs in recent months, including Germany’s largest carmaker, Volkswagen; the largest steelmaker, ThyssenKrupp; and various automotive suppliers.

Kerner argued to Euractiv that the EU and the new government “can still stop job losses” with “joint action.”

The trade unionist explained that they are currently facing both a crisis of demand and a crisis related to industrial transformation. He emphasized that it is still possible to halt three years of job losses in energy-intensive sectors to counter this trend.

“For this, politicians must act together, but employers must also act responsibly,” said Kerner, arguing that the share of industry in Germany’s GDP must be increased again.

According to Kerner, all industrialised countries in Europe are in crisis, but Germany has one of the highest industrial shares. Since all industries are internationally interconnected, when German industry weakens, the impact spreads from Central Europe to the East and West.

The challenges are similar everywhere, Kerner noted, including the fact that markets are no longer as open as they used to be and that high energy costs persist, as illustrated by “America First” policies and industrial strategies in China.

When reminded that economists often argue that the transition from industry to services is “a natural part of economic development,” Kerner responded: “We have to accept that deindustrialisation in the US or the UK, for example, has not led to a richer society but has left many people working in services that they cannot make a living from. The proportion of highly skilled services is not sufficient to replace industrial jobs. As a trade union, we need to make it clear that we can’t all make a living cutting hair.”

“We want answers that normal people can understand,” the union leader said, adding that America and China have completely closed their doors in various technologies and sectors. This means that excess capacity is being brought to Europe, and Europe must respond accordingly.

“If you want to sell products in Europe, they must have a European production share,” Kerner said, adding that they also want Chinese cars to be produced in Europe—not just final assembly, but also with a certain proportion of local suppliers.

Kerner pointed out that what he fundamentally rejected was allowing products to be sold in Europe at “dumping prices” or produced under poor working conditions, leading to the disappearance of European production.

“My impression is that [European Commission President] Ursula von der Leyen has also realised that we need this,” Kerner claimed.

Asked whether this transformation would jeopardise the German export model, Kerner responded: “We have to take into account what is happening in the US and China. So I don’t think we are jeopardising anything.”

Kerner said that Trump and China were not models for them because these countries had “completely closed themselves off.” He pointed out that no one from IG Metall had called for “100 per cent European production.”

Kerner concluded: “We just want to make it clear: If you want to be active in the European market, you must bring a certain amount of production share with you. We can do this without bringing the trade that we Germans, in particular, benefit from to a standstill.”