The future of the crisis-hit Flensburger Schiffbau Gesellschaft (FSG) remains uncertain. All of the company’s employees were laid off on Friday last week. Many are still waiting for their wages.
Employees have been struggling with missing payments for weeks and now, according to the works council, they were completely laid off on Friday, 18 October 2024. This affects the entire workforce, who have now been waiting almost three weeks for their September salaries.
On Monday, 14 October 2024, around 100 FSG employees demonstrated in front of the Flensburg employment office to draw attention to their precarious situation. According to works council member Jan Brandt, the wages should actually have been in the accounts by 27 September, as reported by NDR. This represents an additional financial burden for some of the employees, as they are covered by statutory health insurance and now have to pre-finance their contributions themselves.
Criminal complaint against FSG boss Windhorst
Brandt also explained that many employees have filed a criminal complaint against CEO Lars Windhorst with the Flensburg Labour Court. Windhorst himself justified the delayed payments with a blocked account. However, the works council has expressed fears that the wages for October may not be paid either, further exacerbating the employees’ financial uncertainty.
To draw attention to the growing debts and the tense situation, a “debt clock” in the form of a banner was erected in front of the shipyard gate in Flensburg. The future of FSG remains uncertain, while the workforce waits for a solution and, above all, for their outstanding salaries.
IG Metall wants a “clear cut”
The union IG Metall Küste stood behind the company’s employees. “80 employees at both shipyards are still waiting for their September pay, social security contributions have been outstanding for months and the minimum requirements for safe and functional workplaces have not been met for some time,” said Michael Schmidt, Managing Director of IG Metall Flensburg. “If FSG and Nobiskrug are to have a future, a clear cut is needed now.”
Martin Bitter, Managing Director of IG Metall Rendburg, described the restructuring attempts with Windhorst as “failed”. “There is only a chance for the industrial continuation of the shipyards if action is taken now,” he said. “We obviously have to look very seriously at an insolvency scenario.”
