In response to the rapid, ongoing spread of COVID-19 in Austria and the work stoppages announced by some of chassis manufacturers, Rosenbauer will be temporarily cutting production at its Austrian locations.
In an initial step, the annual shutdown of the Austrian locations, which was originally scheduled for August, will therefore be brought forward to April 6-17, after which short-time work is to be requested as a precautionary measure in consultation with the Works Council.
Critical functions and customer service to continue
The direct and indirect impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our company is currently still limited"
The exact details are currently being planned. Critical functions and customer service will remain in place; disruptions for international Group locations are to be avoided wherever possible. Rosenbauer kicked off the year 2020 with a record order level of more than €1.1 billion, and there have been no cancellations so far.
“The direct and indirect impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our company is currently still limited. Material supplies are largely in place; individual vehicle hand-overs to customers are delayed. But the situation is changing daily. The announcement by a number of suppliers to temporarily halt production heralds a new and critical development, and more will follow,” says Dieter Siegel, CEO of Rosenbauer International. “This is why we have decided to take the precautionary measure of requesting short-time work following an early annual shutdown and careful preparation. I would like to take the opportunity at this juncture to express my sincere thanks to our fantastic employees who, despite their justified concerns, are performing outstandingly under these circumstances.”
Implementation of government measures
The reduction of normal working hours as envisaged in the Austrian government’s short-time work model created in response to the coronavirus outbreak aims to ensure that vehicle production can be temporarily reduced in a controlled manner and, in turn, production processes can be planned more effectively.
It will also reduce social contact in production. Rosenbauer hopes that this strategy will safeguard as many jobs as possible beyond the duration of the crisis.
Protecting employee health
Protecting the health of its employees is a major concern for Rosenbauer, which is why the Executive Board wasted no time in applying the government measures against the coronavirus in the form of a rigid set of procedures governing everyday work.
This encompasses not only the general medical recommendations concerning behavior, but also provisions for remote working, a ban on face-to-face meetings, new rules concerning the use of common rooms and more frequent cleaning/disinfection of workstations. Rosenbauer employs almost 1,600 permanent staff and approximately 340 temporary workers in Austria. The headcount includes around 110 apprentices.
