Factbox: European companies cut jobs as economy sputters

Umicore SA

30/08/2024 10:31

(Adds Shell)
       Aug 30 (Reuters) - Elevated levels of inflation and the
impact of the war in Ukraine have forced companies across Europe
to freeze hiring or cut jobs.
    Here are some of the layoffs announced since the start of
April:
    
    BANKS
    * TSB: The British bank owned by Spain's Sabadell  SABE.MC 
is seeking 250 job cuts, its spokesperson and employee union
said on May 8.
    
    INDUSTRIALS AND ENGINEERING
    * PKP CARGO  PKPP.WA : Poland's largest freight company
plans to lay off 30% of staff, it said on July 3.
    * THYSSENKRUPP  TKAG.DE : The German submarine-to-steel
group said in April it would lay off 450 staff in materials
trade division.
    * UMICORE  UMI.BR : The Belgian metal recycling group plans
to cut 14% positions at its German automotive catalysts business
by 2027, it said on June 19.
    
    RETAIL AND CONSUMER GOODS
    * CASINO  CASP.PA : The French supermarket chain said in
April it would cut 1,293-3,267 positions to improve its
financial situation.
    * DYSON: The vacuum cleaner manufacturer will cut about
1,000 jobs in Britain as part of global restructuring.
    * UNILEVER  ULVR.L : The consumer goods giant plans to cut a
third of all office roles in Europe by the end of 2025.
    
    TELECOMS
    * VODAFONE SPAIN: The former Vodafone  VOD.L  unit that was
recently acquired by Zegona Communications  ZEG.L  plans to cut
up to 1,200 jobs, or just over a third of workforce, it said on
June 12.
    
    PHARMA
    * BAYER  BAYGn.DE : A top Bayer pharmaceutical executive
said on June 26 the group would continue slashing managerial
jobs this year as part of internal reorganization.
    * INDIVIOR  INDV.L : The drugmaker said on July 9 it would
cut about 130 jobs following the discontinuation of sales of its
schizophrenia drug Perseris.
    * NOVARTIS  NOVN.S : The Swiss drugmaker will cut up to 680
jobs in its development organisation, it said in April.
    
    OTHERS
    * BP  BP.L : The oil company has cut more than a tenth of
the workforce - over 100 jobs - in its EV charging business,
company sources said in April. BP did not comment on the exact
number of job cuts.
    * DEUTSCHE BAHN: The German rail operator said on July 25 it
planned to cut 30,000 jobs, or around 9% of staff.
    * INFINEON  IFXGn.DE : The German chipmaker will cut 1,400
jobs worldwide and relocate further 1,400 positions to countries
with lower labour costs, its CEO said on Aug. 5.
    * MANCHESTER UNITED  MANU.N : The English Premier League
club is proposing to cut about 250 jobs as part of a club-wide
redundancy programme, a source close to it said on July 3.
    * SHELL  SHEL.L : The energy giant plans to scale back its
oil and gas exploration and development workforce by 20%,
company sources told Reuters on Aug. 29. In Europe, the cuts are
focused in the Netherlands and Britain, they said. A Shell
spokesman would not comment on the reduction figures.
    * SIEMENS GAMESA: Siemens Energy's  ENR1n.DE  wind turbine
division plans to cut 4,100 jobs, or around 15% of workforce,
the unit's CEO said in an internal letter to staff seen by
Reuters on May 28.
    * TAMEDIA  TXGN : The Swiss media firm said on Aug. 29 it
would close two printing works and lay off almost 300 staff in a
fresh round of cost-saving measures.
    * UPM  UPM.HE : The Finnish forestry group said on Aug. 21
it would close a newsprint mill and shut down one fine paper
machine in Germany, affecting 338 jobs. It will also close its
biocomposites business by the end of 2024, affecting 59 jobs in
Finland and Germany, it said on Aug. 26.

    Source: Regulatory filings, Reuters articles and company
websites

 (Compiled by Agata Rybska, Louise Breusch Rasmussen, Boleslaw
Lasocki, Charlotte Eugenie Yvette Bawol, Olga Sawczuk in Gdansk
and Radhika Anilkumar in Bengaluru; Edited by Shounak Dasgupta
and Milla Nissi)
 ((agata.rybska@thomsonreuters.com))