Chemical giant BASF to slash 3,000 jobs in Germany
Massive German chemical company BASF said Thursday it would slash 6,000 jobs worldwide by 2021, as the company slims down its organization in pursuit of fatter margins.
"BASF expects a reduction of a total of around 6,000 positions worldwide until the end of 2021" out of 122,000 employees, the company said in a statement, saying the layoffs would save around €300 million annually.
Around 3,000 of those jobs will be in Germany at its headquarters in Ludwigshafen am Rhein, a city in Rhineland-Palatinate in west Germany.
The move is part of a broader "excellence programme" aimed at boosting profits by €2 billion per year.
The cuts come amid news Thursday that auto giant Ford would slash 12,000 jobs throughout Europe, with nearly half of them in Germany.
Centralize services
BASF executives aim to "develop our organization to work more effectively and efficiently," chief executive Martin Brudermüller said.
The firm said it would centralize many services common to its different divisions, like engineering, procurement, human resources, finance and logistics, as well as create a 1,000-strong "corporate centre" to support executives.
As part of the restructuring, bosses and worker representatives at BASF's headquarters in Ludwigshafen agreed to bring forward negotiations on a new site agreement to early 2020 -- well ahead of the current jobs and investment deal's expiry date of December next year.
The group has long trailed a reorganization after a tricky 2018 and early 2019 that have seen trade conflicts and one-off factors weigh on profits.
Last year it also gobbled up billions of euros' worth of agrichemical business from Bayer as part of the other company's takeover of US-based Monsanto.
Bayer, a worldwide pharmaceutical and chemical giant, also announced in April that it would be slashing 4,500 jobs in Germany, or one-third of its total cuts worldwide, in order to tighten its finances.
SEE ALSO: Bayer to cut 4,500 jobs in Germany
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"BASF expects a reduction of a total of around 6,000 positions worldwide until the end of 2021" out of 122,000 employees, the company said in a statement, saying the layoffs would save around €300 million annually.
Around 3,000 of those jobs will be in Germany at its headquarters in Ludwigshafen am Rhein, a city in Rhineland-Palatinate in west Germany.
The move is part of a broader "excellence programme" aimed at boosting profits by €2 billion per year.
The cuts come amid news Thursday that auto giant Ford would slash 12,000 jobs throughout Europe, with nearly half of them in Germany.
Centralize services
BASF executives aim to "develop our organization to work more effectively and efficiently," chief executive Martin Brudermüller said.
The firm said it would centralize many services common to its different divisions, like engineering, procurement, human resources, finance and logistics, as well as create a 1,000-strong "corporate centre" to support executives.
As part of the restructuring, bosses and worker representatives at BASF's headquarters in Ludwigshafen agreed to bring forward negotiations on a new site agreement to early 2020 -- well ahead of the current jobs and investment deal's expiry date of December next year.
The group has long trailed a reorganization after a tricky 2018 and early 2019 that have seen trade conflicts and one-off factors weigh on profits.
Last year it also gobbled up billions of euros' worth of agrichemical business from Bayer as part of the other company's takeover of US-based Monsanto.
Bayer, a worldwide pharmaceutical and chemical giant, also announced in April that it would be slashing 4,500 jobs in Germany, or one-third of its total cuts worldwide, in order to tighten its finances.
SEE ALSO: Bayer to cut 4,500 jobs in Germany
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