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State officials discuss splitting Opel from GM

German state governments are working to split car manufacturer Opel from the ailing US parent General Motors, daily Westdeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung reported on Monday.

Published: 16 February 2009 13:24 CET

State officials discuss splitting Opel from GM

photo: DPA

“We cannot carry on like this with GM, the only prospect is disentanglement,” Klaus Franz, head of the Opel workers’ council, told the paper.

One possible scenario for rescuing the traditional German automaker is for the states of North Rhine Westphalia (NRW), Hesse and Thuringia – in which Opel has factories – to take on a share in the company as the state of Lower Saxony did in taking on 20 percent of Volkswagen, the paper reported.

Talks between Opel and GM over a possible separation have been running for several weeks in Düsseldorf, according to the paper, which added that Opel was also trying to gain access to its own technologies because patents are currently with a subsidiary of the US firm.

But some state politicians have offered other alternatives because the European Commission is keen to abolish the so-called VW law, which allegedly violates EU treaty provisions by allowing Lower Saxony to shield the car maker from takeovers.

NRW state premiere Jürgen Rüttgers recently suggested a German-wide fund which could take a share in companies with key significance for the economy during emergencies, the paper said. Other politicians have said the move would be impractical.

“A state share in Opel is not feasible – it would be a suicide mission for taxpayers,” head of the pro-business Free Democrats in the NRW State Parliament, Gerhard Papke, told the paper, referring to difficulties faced by the 720,000 small businesses in the state. “Should the state take a stake in them too?”

Which Bavaria-based companies regularly hire English speakers?

Munich ranks third in German cities with the highest total GDP, behind Berlin and Hamburg, but in terms of GDP per capita, it’s higher than both of them.

It also consistently ranks high, often highest, in terms of average household income.

As of 2023, nine of the 40 companies listed on DAX, Germany’s stock index, were based in Bavaria. Seven of those are based specifically in Munich.

While Frankfurt is commonly known to be Germany’s business capital, Munich can claim the title of Germany’s insurance capital, which is saying something, as Germany is home to some of the largest insurance firms in the world, like Allianz.

Beyond the state’s capital city, a number of international companies are based elsewhere in Bavaria, particularly in the Franken region, near Nuremberg.

Which companies actively hire English speakers?

Bavaria, and Munich in particular, is home to a number of companies at the forefront of international business. But the state is known for its traditional, sometimes conservative, culture, which affects its business culture as well.

Whereas companies embracing English as their primary business language are easy to find in Berlin, the practice is less common in the south. That said, there are some notable exceptions.

Sportswear giants, Adidas and Puma, both have their headquarters near Nuremberg in Herzogenaurach, and regularly recruit English speaking international talent.

“As an international company, our teams reflect the rich diversity of our consumers and communities,” Jon Greenhalgh, Senior Manager Media Relations for Adidas told The Local. “Fostering a culture of inclusion where we value and leverage differences, ensures that we can authentically engage with our employees and truly connect with our consumers.”

He added that around 40 per cent of Adidas’ Germany-based employees are foreign nationals, from over 100 different countries.

Siemens and BMW rank among Bavaria’s top employers, and are also known to hire their fair share of foreigners.

“In Germany, we recently had around 2,000 open positions,” Konstanze Somborn told The Local on behalf of Siemens AG.

He added that Siemens operates in 190 countries. “That is why we value international teams very much…English as a common language is very usual.”

READ ALSO: ‘Which German companies want to hire foreigners?’

Similarly, BMW hires workers from a variety of backgrounds.

“Every year, we hire lots of internationals and welcome them to the BMW Group,” Dr. Hans-Peter Ketterl, a press spokesman for BMW Group told The Local.

But not all of these positions are available to non-German speakers.

Ketterl added that BMW’s working language is German in the country, even though, “English is an indispensable entry requirement as the second corporate language in many areas of the company.”

Check job boards and follow best practices

If it’s your first time applying for jobs in Germany, make sure to change your resume to the German format, even for English positions.

While Germany is home to its own job boards, like Xing, LinkedIn is probably the best place to start. In addition to searching for positions based in your preferred location, you can check relevant groups, like Munich Startups, to broaden your horizons.

The English Jobs in Germany website is also a good resource to start with.

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