Germany’s industrial decline is taking a painful toll on communities that have long relied on local manufacturing titans for jobs, prosperity and a sense of a secure future.
Among the places affected by the downturn is Ludwigshafen, a company town of chemical giant BASF, which has shed thousands of jobs while shifting its focus to China.
“The mood is obviously not good,” Sinischa Horvat, chairman of BASF’s works council, which represents staff interests, told AFP during a visit to the city of about 175,000 people.
“The entire market is currently so weak. When you watch the news, you hardly hear any positive messages.”
BASF is among Germany’s manufacturing heavyweights in sectors ranging from autos to steel and factory equipment that have been cutting back in their domestic markets.
They are battling surging energy costs, fierce competition from China, and weak demand at a time when Europe’s biggest economy is mired in a long stagnation.
Some 2,500 jobs have been axed since 2022 in Ludwigshafen, which is dominated by sprawling chemical plants that stretch along the river Rhine, and more cuts are set to come.
A recent decision to sell off thousands of company-owned apartments, many occupied by current and former workers, has added to unease.
“The sale of these apartments sends a signal to the city and to the people who live here and, in some cases, work at BASF — BASF is scaling back its operations,” Patrick Thiel, who lives in one of the apartments and works at the firm, told AFP.
“There is growing concern that this won’t stop at the apartments but will also affect the main plant,” added the 29-year-old, who also ran as a candidate in recent local polls for far-left party Die Linke.
– China push –
Horvat said having BASF staff in the properties helped created a “symbiosis” between company and community.
“This has fostered an understanding of chemistry and shaped the relationship with BASF in the city,” he said.
BASF — a supplier of base inputs to the agricultural, automotive and pharmaceutical sectors — says the proceeds will go to bolstering its core businesses, but acknowledged that the sale had “raised uncertainties”.
A company spokeswoman however insisted that it would handle the sale responsibly, adding: “No one has to fear losing their home.”
“We will continue to see ourselves as an integral part of the local community in the future,” she said.
Underlining its commitment to Ludwigshafen, where the group has over 30,000 employees — around a third of its global workforce — BASF has agreed to hold off on compulsory redundancies there until at least 2028 and continue investing.