DHL Subsidiary to Cut 8,000 Jobs in Germany
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BERLIN — German postal company Deutsche Post announced on March 6 that it will cut 8,000 jobs by the end of the year, citing high costs, just two days after striking a deal with workers on a 5% pay rise.
The cuts, affecting about 4% of the domestic letter and parcel division’s 187,000 employees, will be carried out in a socially responsible manner, the company said.
Deutsche Post, a subsidiary of global logistics giant DHL Group, said the move is part of a wider cost-cutting program aimed at improving efficiency.
DHL Group ranks No. 5 on the Transport Topics list of the top global freight companies, and No. 14 on the TT 100 list of the top logistics companies.
Despite global economic challenges, DHL Group increased its revenue in fiscal year 2024. #DHLresults https://t.co/aC9AfvhZdI — DHL Group (@DHLGlobal) March 6, 2025
The savings program also affects other divisions of DHL, which employs about 600,000 people worldwide.
The group is grappling with rising costs. While DHL’s revenue increased 3% to 84.2 billion euros ($90.9 billion) last year, earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) fell by 7.2% to 5.9 billion euros.
The cost-cutting measures are expected to generate savings of more than 1 billion euros.
The announcement of the job cuts comes after postal workers reached a collective bargaining agreement on March 4, with wages set to rise by 2% in April.
The deal, announced by Deutsche Post and the Verdi trade union, will see some 170,000 workers receive an immediate boost in salary next month before a further 3% rise in April 2026.
After the agreement was announced on March 4, Nikola Hagleitner, the responsible DHL board member for Post & Parcel Germany, stated that due to the economic environment and the collective agreement, “cost-cutting measures will have to be consistently expanded and accelerated.”
Labor representatives at Deutsche Post reacted with alarm to the plans on March 6, with works council leader Thomas Held saying he believes more layoffs could follow this year.
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“We fear that this will only be the tip of the iceberg and thousands of further jobs will be cut,” including those covered by the wage agreement, Held told dpa in the western city of Bonn, where Deutsche Post is headquartered.
Held justified his concerns by citing a tax reform that exempts smaller, regional mail delivery companies from VAT, a privilege so far only enjoyed by Deutsche Post, Germany’s main postal service, which has to ensure deliveries nationwide.
The works council leader called on the federal government to put an end to the “unfair competition” caused by the reform and to restore the old tax advantage for Deutsche Post, arguing that as a universal service provider, the company faces significantly higher costs than its competitors.
A lawmaker for the Social Democratic Party (SPD) of outgoing Chancellor Olaf Scholz slammed Deutsche Post management over the decision to slash thousands of jobs, calling it a “bitter blow for employees and their families.”
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“We are fighting for every job in Germany — and the next government must also apply this principle,” SPD lawmaker Katja Mast said.
The SPD is currently in exploratory talks with the conservative bloc to form the next government following parliamentary elections on Feb. 23.
SPD lawmaker Sebastian Roloff, who worked on the tax reform, said it was clear that the postal service had to be competitive.
“That is why we have created a framework for appropriate funding to ensure nationwide services in the postal act,” he said, calling on DHL to explain why the job cuts were necessary.
