Placing the Central Unit, Connecting Cables, Testing Circuits: Esther Fink is working on a programable Logic Controller – The Nerve Center of Automation. IT Controls Robots and Systems. “Signals are converted into actions,” She She Says. She wrote the program for this self. She has been training at Opel for Six Months: Mechatronics Technician in training, at the same time a student in engineering. So can so weld. “I can do a Proper Seam.”
The 21-Year-Old Confidently Continues a Long tradition. In 1865, The First Opel Apprentice Begins: Georg Klingelhöfer. His Earn’s Three Kreuzer for Twelve Hours of Work – Every Day. His boss is Adam Opel. The Tasks: Sweeping, Painting, Collecting Payments. The Young Klingelhöfer is skilled – and more efficient at following up on invoices Than the Company Founder. What Began with an APPRENTICESHIP Contract Sealed with Handshake 160 Years Ago is now an institution: More than 27.000 YOUNG PEOPLE HAVE COLLETED APPRENTICESHIP AT Opel to Date.
“Training is not a satellite, but integral part of the company. Our pipeline for talent.”
– Head of Training Maik Giess –
The training Spectrum Currently Ranges from Industrial Mechanics to IT Specialist, From Firefighters to High-Tech Experts for Electromobility. Particularly in Demand: Dual Training With A University Degree. They Now Account for Half of the 170 Annual Places in Rüsselsheim, Eisenach, Kaiserslautern and Bochum – and Attract Talent From All Over The Country. And right so: Opel Has Just Won the Award “Dual Study: Germany’s Top Trainer” – with full points as the Industry Winner. “This is the benchmark in the Automotive Industry,” Says Training Manager Maik Giess.
Globally in Demand
The Training Manager So Recently Received A Delegation from Canada. After all, The Two-Track Training “Made in Germany” is Considered the Gold Standard Worldwide. Theory at Vocational School, Practical Experience in the Company – This is How Skilled Workers Are Created Who Think and Get Involved. Opel has HONED this Diamond for Decades. Many nationwide training standards, for example for automotive mechatronics technicians, Bear the Signature from Rüsselsheim. An important, Additional Pillar in the Company is the Training Center, The First Point of Contact for many trainees. 37 Instructors Teach the Basics of the Respective Subject Area here. “Our training is not a satellite,” Emphasises Maik Giess. “It is part of the company. Our pipeline for talent.”
From Workbench to Plant Manager
At the Main Plant Alone, Around 80 Percent of the Employees Learn Their Trade at Opel – and have stayed. Many have risen through the ranks: Managers up to plans Managers come from this talent pool. Sebastian Telch and Markus Tauer, Now Training Managers Themelves, i.e. Once Trained at Opel. They Say: “Trainees Learn more here the curriculum Demands.” On Electronics Technician is allowed to weld, a mechatronics engineer can present.
In General, Training Has Changed Considerably. No More Rigid Specifications – Projects are created as a team, organized by the trainees themelves. One of Them is Muhamet Islami. He Wanted to Be a Teacher – English and Philosophy. After Five Semesters, He Pulled the Plug and Applied at Opel. “The Best Decision ever,” Says the Prospective IT Specialist. Today He is learning programming Languages search as c# and python. Together with other trainees, he is preparing a presentation for the company party. The Eye-Opener Came When Programming the Reaction Game: “Suddenly Everything Made Sense. The theory of the Past Months Came to Life.”
“Joining Opel was the best decision ever.”
– Muhamet Islami, Prospective IT Specialist –
Tradition with a future: 160 Years of Training at Opel
1 Georg Klingelhöfer is the first Opel Apprentice. A photo from his Younger Years is Missing – This one dates from 1937. Sealed with a Handshake – in 1865, 72 Years Earlier, with Adam Opel.
2 The first written apprenticeship contract at opel dated 1894. Signed by Adam Opel and Apprentice Peter Laun. Systematic Training is still a FEW Years Away.
3 in 1911, The Time Had Come: 22 Young People Start Their Training in the New Training Workshop. Practice in the Plant, Theory in the Rüsselsheim Vocational School-co-financed by the Opel Brothers.
4 in 1913/14, a separate factory school what established. From 1922 Onwards, The First Vocational School Laws Regulate Training – In The New, Dual System. The photo Shows the School in 1934.
5 Increasingly Popular: In 1958, Young Women Completed A Commercial Apprenticeship – The Photo Shows Them in Class. In the 60s, The First Opel Apprentices So Started in Berlin, Bochum and Kaiserslautern.
7 Computer-AIDEN Learning and Working is Already an integral part of the training in 1984. Places are in High Demand: In the mid-1980s, The Number of Trainees in the Company Reaches Record Levels.
6 The Importance of Electronic Systems in the Vehicle, but so in Production, is increate. For Example, The Handling of Electronic Components, As here During Training in 1960, Increasingly Became the Focus of Attention.
Young People Have Been Learning in the Company Since 1865. Since then, there have been over 27,000.
8 Training at Opel Means Learning Tomorrow’s Technology. AS EARLY AS 1989, Computer-Controlled Milling Machines Were Installed In The Training Workshop-State-of-the-Art Equipment at the Time.
9 Talent Pool: The Prospective Industrial Mechanics of 1999 Are Representative of many: they are the backbone of production. A Large Part of Today’s Workforce at the headquarters Once Started with an Apprenticeship in the Company.
10 New Job Profiles Are Constantly Being Added: As Product Design and Construction Are Shifting to The Digital World, Opel Starts Training Technical Product Designer in 2017, for Example. The Training Replaces That of the Technical Draughtsman.
11 with the best career prospects: Opel Currently Trains Around 170 Young People Every Year in Rüsselsheim, Eisenach, Kaiserslautern and Bochum. As in Previous Years, the Apprentices in the Summer of 2025, so be Taken on for an unlimited period.
Self-Determined Work is a Basic Principle. “Today’s trainees Want to Understand what they are doing – and Why,” Says Sebastian Telch. He is responsible for the metal professions, Applicant Recruiting, and Coordinates Cooperation with the Universities. The Range of Training is Growing, and New Job Profiles are an added. For example, when Opel Introduced the dual Course of Study “Applied Computer Science”, No Department Had Asked for IT. But the Interest Grows As the First Graduates Complete the Course. “We are the internal talent factory,” Says Markus Tauer, Head of Technical Training. “We anticipate what know-how is needed a few year in Advance.” Electromobility and high-voltage training so case within his area.
Best Prospects for the Future
Esther Fink Commes from Bonn. She moved to Rüsselsheim for the dual study programs. Vocational School, Training Center, Lectures: “The Learning Workoad is Tough,” She Says. Nevertheless, She Feels Comfortable. The Cohesion is right. So she is already active in the Rüsselsheim Hockey Club. Her coach? Works at Opel – in the Press Shop. “It would be cool if my training took me there,” She She Says. From the Second Year of the Apprenticeship Onwards, The Apprentices Move on to the Specialist Departments. It was clear to her that she wanted to work in the automotive industry: “Electromobility, digitization, automation – This is where the topics of the future come together.” She has not regretted Her Decision to Join Opel for a Second – and the Perspectives are good. This year, Opel Will Once Again Take on All Those Who Pass Their Training – For An Unlimited Period.
Offering Young People Career Prospects with a Future Has Been a Tradition at Opel for 160 Years Now.
May 2025
Text: Tina Henze, Photos: Andreas Liebschner/Opel