Restructuring events
European Restructuring Monitor (ERM)
The restructuring events database contains factsheets with data on large-scale restructuring events reported in the principal national media and company websites in each EU Member State. This database was created in 2002.
Punch Powertrain has announced that it will dismiss 188 of its employees at their production facility in Sint-Truiden. Currently only the blue collar workers at the production line will be affected. Addtional information from the company management will be provided at the end of September 2019. It is not unlikely that some white collar dismissals will be announced then. The main reasoning behind the job cuts is the fact that the demand for gearboxes in China has dropped significantly in the recent period. The company exclusively delivers to the Chinese market and therefore is forced to reduce its costs by 2022, when a new contract for the French PSA group starts. Trade unions fear additional dismissals but no plans for strikes or other actions have been announced.
Updated, 08/04/2021: In 2020, the final amount of dismissals in the facility in Sint-Truiden ultimately was reduced to 138 employees through negotiations between the company management and the unions.
Eurofound (2019), Punch Powertrain, Internal restructuring in Belgium, factsheet number 98411, European Restructuring Monitor. Dublin, https://apps.eurofound.europa.eu/restructuring-events/detail/98411.