Red Cat pledges job protections in Steyr Motors takeover

US drone developer Red Cat Holdings has agreed to safeguards for jobs and operations at Steyr Motors as part of its planned 205 million euro takeover of the Austrian engine maker, ORF reported on Wednesday.

Under the agreement, Red Cat will not move Steyr Motors’ headquarters, manufacturing or research and development operations away from Steyr for three years after the offer is completed. It also commits not to make redundancies for operational reasons at Steyr Motors for two years.

The agreement says employees’ rights, including existing works agreements and collective bargaining provisions, will remain in force. Steyr Motors will also support a possible stock market delisting or later exclusion of minority shareholders, provided this is compatible with the board’s legal obligations.

Red Cat plans to develop Steyr, in Upper Austria, as a development and production centre. The takeover is intended to give the US company access to key technologies for its uncrewed systems business, including a new mobile power unit from Steyr that can serve as a drone charging station. Steyr Motors also makes high-performance engines used as auxiliary power units in vehicles including the Leopard 2 battle tank.