German Carmakers Shorten Christmas Breaks

The bad news for German auto workers is that this year, their Christmas breaks will be shortened. The good news is that they will be payed more for their increased efforts. The rebound on the automotive industry is forcing German manufacturers Daimler and BMW to do the exact opposite of what most of the industry (including them) was doing last year.

The high demand in vehicles from the two manufacturers is calling for an increased production schedule. For the duo, this means that the Christmas brake will be shorter, or not at all.

BMW will skip the Christmas break this year at the plants in Dingolfing and Leipzig. The same will happen at the Daimler facility in Hamburg.

“Production capacity is the limiting factor at the moment,” Michael Rebstock, a spokesman for BMW was quoted as saying by Autonews. “We are producing as much as we can and are happy for every additional shift we can get.”

The tradition is that the car plants usually shut down between Christmas and New Year's Eve, but that can change. Last year, most of the carmakers took the opportunity and extended the breaks as much as possible, to as much as two or even three weeks. This year, however, the situation has changed and most are looking to shorten or eliminate the break.

The other carmakers in Germany, led by Europe's largest manufacturer, Volkswagen, will keep to the tradition and haven't announced any plans to skip the planned shut down. The breaks vary from one week to two, depending on the carmaker.