The students from the Technical University of Berlin (TU Berlin) participated in a week-long seminar at the IG Metall-House Berlin and visited the Mercedes-Benz apprenticeship workshop in Marienfelde as part of the sociological seminar “Sociology of the Engineering Profession”. In the process they grappled with the question of which social responsibilities young engineers face in today’s world. Does their knowledge only serve the interests of accumulating capital, or should it be used to address social problems like the social-ecological transformation? The seminar “Sociology of the Engineering Profession” and cooperation between IG Metall and TU Berlin has existed for 50 years and has become an integral part of the standard teachings.   

Essential part of the Seminar is an investigation into business practices and dialogue with workers. Members of the Works Council at Mercedes-Benz Ludwigsfelde GmbH welcomed 26 students. As a result, there was a vivid discussion on themes like environmental protection, the social-ecological transformation and the consequences of political decisions on the day-to-day work life. 

Using the case study of Mercedes-Benz Ludwigsfelde GmbH the discussion became very concrete. The young engineers looked deeper at chances and challenges of the Mercedes factory. As a result, creative ideas and solutions where outlined, such as:  

• Production of cargo bikes and wind turbine rotors 

• Founding of a cooperative and production on customer-demand 

• Campus for future with a cooperation between science and economy 

We, as IG Metall, want to develop those results further with our members and the woco on site. With the union-team ReTrNetz Berlin-Brandenburg, expertise within our companies and our political network, we want to shape the upcoming transformation actively. For we stand for good working and living conditions in the socio-ecological transformation.