Restructuring is part of a continuous process in the private sector but it is surprising given the up beat comments from most quarters that the levels of redundancy remain as high.
We have noted the following headline numbers in the last few days:
Toyota – 750 jobs to go at Burnaston, one of the most efficient car plants in Europe.
QinetiQ – the defense contractor is to shed 391 jobs as it prepares for a downturn in business.
Hewlett Packard – to shed a 1000 jobs , but retains 2000 on temporary contracts, a sure sign of nervousness.
Mirror – talking about letting 80 go as newspapers face up to the digital age.
Cadbury – perhaps only to be expected given Kraft’s track record but about 150 senior jobs have disappeared from the old HQ to add to the closure in Keynsham and the move of European HQ from Cheltenham.
The banks – hiring and firing. Hiring at the very top end but shedding staff elsewhere. Can you believe that a bank is now marketing “we aim to serve our customers within 5 minutes” as a positive, they really have no idea.
These are just the headline grabbing cuts, there will be more we don’t read about plus many have put recruitment plans on hold as they try to evaluate how the market will effect their business in the months ahead.
The fall out from the public sector cuts to be made will come through to the private sector as reduced demand, lower liquidity and a squeeze on profit margins with a real risk of a double dip occurring and at best a shallow jobless recovery.
Author: Chris Slay
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