That’s how many euros Mercedes pays its employees to leave the company voluntarily

Five billion euros

Mercedes-Benz plans to save a total of about five billion euros until 2027. Part of that amount comes from downsizing the workforce. There are no layoffs officially, but with severance packages that are almost too good to refuse, Mercedes hopes that a large number of employees will walk out the door themselves. Depending on their position, age and years of service, employees can take home up to more than half a million euros if they quit.

4,000 employees

According to the German Handelsblatt , some four thousand employees have already accepted the offer. It covers a wide range of positions: from technicians in the factory to IT specialists, designers, engineers and managers in the office. Some employees even received a so-called “turbo bonus” – an extra bonus for those who decided to take up the offer quickly.

Old timers

The arrangement is primarily for employees who cannot actually be laid off. In fact, there are long-term job security agreements within Mercedes that protect some staff members from dismissal until as late as 2034. By offering them a generous amount of money to leave voluntarily, Mercedes saves quite a bit of labor costs in the long run.

Young to old

Exactly how high these severance packages are varies from one employee to another. A 55-year-old team leader with thirty years of service and a monthly salary of around nine thousand euros gets about half a million euros, according to the German newspaper. Younger employees with fewer years of service are also offered substantial sums – often above a hundred thousand euros. The program continues until March 2026, and Mercedes expects quite a few more employees to follow.

Transition

The timing of the plan is no coincidence. The German automaker is in the midst of a huge transition. Electrification, digitization and automation require different skills than those of traditional automotive engineers. By downsizing its workforce now, Mercedes wants to make room for new positions that are better suited to the brand’s future. Mercedes itself emphasizes that the restructuring is necessary to remain competitive in an ever-changing industry.

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