No Layoff Notices Yet at Ueckermünde Foundry as Unions and Politicians Fight to Keep Plant Alive

Workers at the iron foundry in Ueckermünde are still waiting for formal termination letters — and that silence is buying time for a last-ditch campaign to save the site.

Regional media report that not a single redundancy notice has been issued, even though the plant's closure has already been announced. Employee representatives are now using that gap to organize resistance and search for a way to keep the operation running and protect jobs in the region.

Owner Shows Little Appetite for a Rescue

Talks will not start from a position of strength. The works belongs to the Breyden Group, and politicians have been blunt about the company's stance. Philipp Amthor, a CDU member of the Bundestag and state minister, said after consultations that the Breyden Group has shown no particular interest in continuing operations at the site in Vorpommern (Western Pomerania).

Wolfgang Blank, the state's economics minister, reached a similar verdict: management has so far displayed scant willingness to compromise, and there is little sign of movement from the group.

Crisis Team Meets Past Its Scheduled Finish

A crisis team convened to coordinate next steps and explore possible options. The meeting, held late Friday afternoon, brought together Amthor and Blank alongside Michael Sack, district administrator of Vorpommern-Greifswald, and other participants.

It ran well over its allotted time — roughly an hour longer than planned. The substance of the discussion centered on marshaling political backing for the site and turning up the heat on its owners.

Production Slated for the Saarland

The planned shutdown appears rooted in a strategic realignment inside the owner group. According to available information, the foundry's production is expected to be pulled out of Ueckermünde and moved to the Saarland. For the workforce and the Vorpommern region, losing the traditional plant would be a heavy blow, given how scarce industrial jobs remain in Germany's northeast.

Because management has held off on formal dismissals, the works council and trade unions have room to maneuver. They intend to use that leverage in the coming talks to put alternative concepts on the table and head off the closure.

Whether the Breyden Group can be persuaded to change course — or at least to give binding commitments on securing the plant — will depend on further rounds of negotiation. State and local politicians have already said they will keep following the matter closely.