Automaker Pays Employees Up To $540,000 To Quit

If you’ve been slogging away at Mercedes-Benz for years and have had enough, it looks like the universe has thrown you a curveball – and not a bad one. While the German automaker isn’t sending out holiday gifts anytime soon, they are offering a pretty sweet deal to entice some employees to call it quits. The company is reportedly handing out buyout offers as part of an effort to save €5 billion (equal to $5.4 billion at current exchange rates) by 2027.

A Payout You Can’t Ignore

The deals are generous, to say the least. According to German media reports, Mercedes-Benz is offering long-term employees six-figure payouts to voluntarily leave their positions. The exact amount depends on factors like salary and years of service. So, if you’re thinking of taking the money and running, it might be worth your while.

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Germany’s Handelsblatt says it obtained some details about these offers through Mercedes’ intranet platform. For example, a 55-year-old team leader with a monthly salary of around €9,000 ($9,700) and 30 years on the job could walk away with over €500,000 ($540,000). Not too shabby for a nice, early retirement package, right?

Who’s Eligible for These Golden Handshakes?

The Mercedes-Benz Group is reportedly offering these payouts to as many as 30,000 employees who aren’t directly involved in production. To put that into perspective, a 45-year-old clerk with 20 years at the company and a monthly salary of €7,500 ($8,100) could pocket over €300,000 ($324,000). Even a worker in their mid-thirties earning €6,000 ($6,500) per month might find themselves walking away with over €100,000 ($108,000).

The company plans to make individual written offers to the 30,000+ employees eligible for this deal by the end of April, with responses due by July 31. If workers don’t want to leave, no pressure – they won’t be fired. On the flip side, Mercedes also reserves the right to turn down any employee who might be lured by the severance offers, especially if they’re in a critical role, as it looks to retain as much top talent as possible.

So why is Mercedes doing this? These severance packages are on the table because existing administrative staff are protected from layoffs until the end of 2034, thanks to previous agreements. In addition to axing these jobs, the company is also planning a separate program to cut manager positions at the department level and above, hoping to cut a “disproportionate” number of jobs in management.