Following the first round of personnel optimization in February 2025, Mercedes-Benz China launched a second round of structural layoffs in the middle of 2026, with the adjustment scope expanding from the initial sales and automotive finance sectors to the R&D and manufacturing ends. This German automaker, which once held an absolute advantage in the Chinese luxury car market, is experiencing a continuous contraction in its layout in China.
The second round of layoffs was implemented: the compensation was reduced from N+11 to N+6, and the sales department was the first to act.
In fact, Mercedes-Benz China completed two rounds of personnel optimization with relatively high visibility within less than one and a half years.
In February 2025, when Mercedes-Benz initiated the first round of large-scale layoffs, the basic compensation offered was N+9, and on-site signed employees could receive an additional three-month salary subsidy; if an employee did not join a new company within two months, they could also enjoy transitional salary compensation, with the overall maximum compensation standard reaching N+11, which was regarded as a typical case of a luxury car company's moderate optimization.
Compared with the first round of adjustment in 2025, the second round of layoffs by Mercedes-Benz China saw a significant tightening of the scale and welfare standards. This round of layoffs only retained the basic compensation policy of N+6, eliminating the previous signing rewards and transitional salary subsidies, and the protection of employee rights and benefits has shrunk. From the perspective of the adjustment scope, this round of layoffs mainly focused on the sales and financial core business system, while the R&D sector was not involved.
The downward adjustment of compensation standards and the expansion of the scope correspond to the consecutive decline in sales in China over the past three statistical periods: According to official data, in 2024, Mercedes-Benz passenger vehicles sold 683,600 units in China, a year-on-year decline of 7%; in 2025, Mercedes-Benz's cumulative sales in China were 575,000 units, a significant year-on-year decline of 19.3%, reaching a new low in five years. In the first quarter of 2026, Mercedes-Benz's sales in China were 111,600 units, a year-on-year decline of 27%, far exceeding the 6% average decline of Mercedes-Benz globally. The Chinese market, which once supported Mercedes-Benz's global performance, has now become a drag on the group's performance. Mercedes-Benz has defined 2026 as the "transition year" for the Chinese market, with a sales target set at 50-60万辆.
Expansion of adjustments： Simultaneous contraction in R&D and manufacturing ends， and slowed production rhythm
Apart from the sales system， the personnel adjustments in the R&D and manufacturing ends in China have also been initiated successively. The R&D centers in Beijing and Shanghai have approximately 2，000 employees， covering local vehicle development， intelligence， and electrification， etc. According to informed sources， this year， the R&D department is expected to lay off 10%， and the adjustments are mostly implemented in the form of contract expiration without renewal and business contraction and staff reduction， with inconsistent compensation standards， with some employees only receiving the legal N compensation， while others receive N+9 compensation.
The pressure on the manufacturing end emerged earlier， and the two factories in Beijing and Jiujiang of Beijing Benz have shown significant personnel mobility since 2025， with the number of departures exceeding 2000 last year， involving multiple departments such as production， logistics， and planning. The departure was mainly through negotiated resignation， and some of the voluntarily resigned employees did not receive compensation. Those who negotiated for resignation could receive N+1 compensation.
Affected by the decline in production volume， the holiday schedule of the factories has been significantly prolonged. In April 2026， the engine department had a consecutive holiday of more than ten days， and the Dragon Boat Festival holiday was also five days. Changes in the perception of employees have also emerged： The company gym benefits that could be used in multiple locations have been cancelled. The R&D team used to work until around 6 p.m.， and since 2026， evening and weekend overtime has become the norm. The label of "stable foreign enterprise" is gradually fading.
China's contraction under the background of global cost reduction
Mercedes-Benz's personnel adjustments are not limited to China. The group-level efforts have been advancing global cost reduction. Recently， it will negotiate with German union representatives to discuss additional cost-cutting and competitiveness-related measures； in Germany， more measures such as voluntary resignation， buyout， and control of salary growth are used to reduce labor costs.
However， the uniqueness of the Chinese market lies in： It has long been one of Mercedes-Benz's most important sales and profit markets globally， and is also a key region supporting its luxury brand premium. The official term "transition year" and the target of 50-60万辆 correspond to the dual pressures that Mercedes-Benz has acknowledged themselves - "intense competition + weak demand".
Some analyses suggest that what Mercedes-Benz is currently facing is not a single sales fluctuation, but structural pressure faced by traditional luxury brands in the transition to new energy and intelligence. If Mercedes-Benz wants to remain in the mainstream competitive position in the Chinese market, it may need to keep its brand, design, and luxury standards to itself, and rely more on Chinese partners for intelligent cabins, assisted driving, ecological software， supply chain， and product definition - the finding of Momenta for the pure electric CLA based on the MMA platform is already one of the steps. However， as Mercedes-Benz increasingly relies on China's intelligent capabilities to fill its gaps， it still needs to re-prove its differentiation； otherwise， it will neither be able to return to the high premium of the fuel vehicle era nor enter more direct technological and price competition with Chinese brands in the new energy market.
As of the time of publication， Mercedes-Benz China has not responded to the specific proportion， compensation details， and changes in production rhythm of this round of research and manufacturing adjustments to the outside world.
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