Biberach, 9th April 2019 – This Monday, the Handtmann Group of Companies, the works council and IG Metall trade union reached agreement on a redundancy programme for the job cuts at Handtmann Armaturenfabrik. The jobs of 46 employees were most recently affected by the company’s restructuring. This was due to changes in the brewery sector, which the Armaturenfabrik mainly supplies. "We are pleased to be able to offer 20 employees a position in one of the Handtmann Group companies. The remaining employees are absorbed by a transfer company. We have also set up a hardship fund. From our point of view, this is a responsible solution,” explains Jörg Hochhausen, Managing Director of Handtmann Service GmbH & Co. KG. “The job cuts are lower than the company had originally planned. Negotiations in this respect were tough but constructive and we achieved a solid result. The 15 colleagues, who now have to find a new job, will receive the best possible support,” says Eustachio Di Pelo, IG Metall secretary in charge.
The decision of how many jobs are to be cut lies with the company. Handtmann Armaturenfabrik had originally planned to cut 70 jobs due to its restructuring. Numerous employees meanwhile successfully applied for vacant positions within the Handtmann Group of Companies. A few found employment with other companies. Hence, the last issue was the future of 46 employees of the Armaturenfabrik, A redundancy programme now defines how the job cuts will be implemented. This was agreed by Handtmann, the Armaturenfabrik works council and the IG Metall trade union on 8th April.
20 of the 46 employees affected are to receive a transfer offer within the Handtmann Group of Companies. Handtmann had already committed itself at the beginning of the negotiations to examining all possibilities for internal transfers.
A second group of eleven employees older than 59 years of age will move to a transfer company in order to facilitate their transition to retirement. Handtmann will also continue to cover the contributions to pension insurance in this context, so that those affected must not fear any pension cuts.
The third group of 15 employees, for whom no follow-on employment at Handtmann was found, will also be absorbed by a transfer company. They will receive a severance payment and support in their further qualification and search for a job.
Handtmann has also set up a hardship fund for employees who find themselves in need as a result of the job cuts.
“We need to restructure the Armaturenfabrik to make it a prosperous part of our group of companies again. Handtmann feels the obligation to do this as responsibly as only possible. We managed to offer the majority of the employees affected career prospects at Handtmann. I would expressly like to thank the works council and the IG Metall trade union for the constructive suggestions and the tough but fair negotiations,” comments Jörg Hochhausen. Eustachio Di Pelo also assesses the outcome of the negotiations as positive: “Only a few employees need to find new employment outside of Handtmann. The company acted responsibly and was willing to compromise. We can be satisfied with the result.”
