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Opel makes case for German bailout

Opel lobbied German authorities on Monday for state aid, arguing the struggling car maker could stand on its own feet despite the problems of its US parent company General Motors.

Published: 2 March 2009 16:51 CET
Opel makes case for German bailout
Photo: DPA

Opel leaders were in Berlin to argue their case with Economy Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg, and present him with a restructuring proposal that includes €3.3 billion ($4.2 billion) in public aid.

Not all of the aid would come from Germany, but the minister nonetheless remained cautious, saying after the meeting that “there are still a lot of unanswered questions.”

German authorities would “carefully study the project” and pursue talks on the matter, including with the US government, zu Guttenberg added. He is to visit the United States in two weeks, but Berlin also has an eye on the German general election to be held in September.

In addition to the public aid, Opel’s proposal to turn the company around that was approved Friday by the supervisory board foresees greater autonomy for the German car maker from its US parent.

A spokesman for the German government said Monday that a major concern for Berlin was ensuring that German taxpayers’ money did not got towards saving jobs in the United States.

Although Opel has been a German industrial icon since the 19th century, it was bought by GM in 1929, the year the Great Depression began. Opel is “very strongly integrated into GM,” a spokesman said. It is wholly owned by the US group and does not publish separate annual results, he added.

Members of the IG Metall trade union have claimed Opel does not even have a bank account, which the company disputes.

“Of course Opel has accounts but it is true that its refinancing is done completely via GM,” the spokesman told AFP.

According to press reports, GM took Opel patents two years ago, placed them with a subsidiary in the United States, GM GTO, and now forces Opel to pay a license fee.

Officially, Opel declines to comment, and while the spokesman said it “had complete access to all patents,” he did not provide details on conditions for that access.

GM has three research and development centres, with one at Opel headquarters in Ruesselsheim, near Frankfurt, that is in charge of small- and medium-sized vehicles for the entire group. The centre employs 6,500 people and is deemed to hold more promise for GM’s future than those that work on bigger models which consume more fuel and emit more pollution.

Opel is also a leading force in GM’s research into electric cars, one of which, the Ampera, will be presented this week at the Geneva auto show. In addition to work being done in Germany, the spokesman said that GM’s US-based electric car research is directed “by an engineer from Rüsselsheim.”

Such close integration makes it impossible to completely separate Opel from the US group, management and unions agree.

On its own, Opel is also too small to survive, BHF-Bank analyst Albrecht Denninghoff told AFP.

“There could be a legal separation, in order to obtain subsidies,” but no more than that, he said.

In the next few weeks, therefore, authorities must come up with a suitable judicial framework and define the conditions under which Opel could gain its autonomy.

More than 26,000 jobs are directly at stake in Germany, in addition to those at parts suppliers. Opel also operates plants in Belgium, Britain and Spain.

The head of GM Europe, Carl-Peter Forster, has said the group “will ask other countries, in which we have significant activities, to contribute” to the rescue package.

Government spokesman Ulrich Wilhelm told a news conference on Monday that a decision to assist Opel would have to be approved by European Union competition regulators in Brussels.

“It is our aim to deal with this quickly and properly,” Wilhelm said. “At the end of the day what is at stake here is the fate of several thousand people.”

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WORKING IN GERMANY

Which Bavaria-based companies regularly hire English speakers?

Bavaria is no doubt a beautiful state with a strong economy, but can be a hard place for non-German speakers to integrate. The Local takes a look at job opportunities in Germany’s southeastern 'Free State.'

Published: 7 February 2024 10:54 CET
Updated: 10 February 2024 08:20 CET
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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