Nokia has revealed plans to lay off around 350 of its 6,000 employees in Finland this year as part of a cost-savings programme designed to shed €700 million from its operating and production expenditure by end-2020.
The Finland-based vendor said consultations with employee representatives will begin on 22 January and the cuts will impact all of Nokia’s business groups and support functions, and target all sites in Finland save for its Oulu factory.
“Our industry is one where a constant focus on costs is vital and the planned transformation measures are essential to secure Nokia’s long-term competitiveness. Such decisions are not easy, but we will do our utmost to support our personnel during the change process,” Tommi Uitto, Nokia’s country manager for Finland, had said in a statement, adding that, “Our early progress in 5G is strong and we continue to increase our investment in this critical technology.
We will redouble our efforts to ensure that Nokia’s disciplined operating model remains a source of competitive advantage for us and that we maintain our position as the industry leader in cost management, productivity and efficiency,” he added.
The company said its global restructuring and cost reduction programme also covers other countries, though “the schedules and measures will vary in accordance with local prevailing laws and practices.”
It would be recalled that Nokia had earlier finalised the sale of the majority of its IP Video business to Volaris Group, a Canadian software company, for an undisclosed amount.
Nokia reduced its net loss attributable to shareholders from €183 million in Q3 2017 period to €79 million in the same period of 2018, while net sales of €5.4 billion were down marginally from €5.5 billion.
