|
Alstom cutting 10,000 jobs
|
 |
February 29, 2000: 12:35 p.m. ET
Power gear maker to shed 20% of workforce in bid to slash costs 30%
|
LONDON (CNNfn) - ABB Alstom Power, the world's second-largest producer of power systems, disclosed plans Tuesday to cut 10,000 jobs as part of a major restructuring program aimed at slashing its cost base by 30 percent over three years.
The company, a 50-50 joint venture of Paris-based Alstom and Swiss-Swedish ABB, was formed last year to provide both companies with the scale to compete in a sector hit by the slump in demand from the previously booming Asian market.
Although about 5,400 of the cuts are expected to come in Europe, the reductions will affect 25 sites worldwide that currently employ a work force of 54,000. The company said the restructuring reflects declines in the traditional steam-based power generation markets.
The reduction is the second huge layoff announced by a European company in a week. Unilever, the world's second-largest consumer goods producer, plans to cut its global work force by 25,000 while it reduces the number of brands it produces by three-quarters.
Alstom (PALS) shares closed 6.1 percent higher in Paris while ABB stock lost 1.4 percent in Zurich. 
|
|
|
|
|
|
Alstom
ABB
|
Note: Pages will open in a new browser window
External sites are not endorsed by CNNmoney
|
|
|
|
 |
|
