Companies across Europe have been forced to lay off workers or stop hiring due to decades of high prices and the impact of the Ukraine war.

Since January, the following companies have announced layoffs:

AUTOS

* STELLANTIS: the manufacturer of automobiles concurred with unions in February to lay off up to 2,000 workers from its Italian operations through voluntary redundancy. 

* VOLVO: the Swedish group announced in March that it would restructure its European bus-making operation, resulting in the loss of 1,600 jobs. 

* VOLVO CARS: the automaker announced 1,300 additional layoffs in Sweden on May 4th, accounting for 6% of the company’s workforce in Sweden.

FOOD, RETAIL AND CONSUMER GOODS

* DELIVEROO: On February 9, the British food delivery company announced a 9% employee reduction, or 350 job cuts. SAINSBURY’S: The British supermarket giant stated on Feb. 28 that it aims to merge five existing Sainsbury’s and Argos general merchandise sites into three, closing two by 2026, affecting 1,400 jobs.

* ZALANDO: On February 21, the German online fashion retailer announced the layoff of hundreds of employees across the company, citing over-expansion in some regions and a more difficult economic environment.

* FIELMANN: The German eyewear store said on March 3 that it would lay off hundreds of employees by 2025.

INDUSTRIALS AND ENGINEERING

* BRITISH STEEL: After announcing the planned shutdown of its coke furnaces in northern England, the Chinese-owned company stated on Feb. 22 that it could lose up to 260 jobs.

* KONE: The Finnish lift manufacturer announced on January 26 that it will cut 1,000 jobs, including 150 in Finland.

TECH

* ERICSSON: The telecom equipment company will lay off 8,500 workers globally as part of a cost-cutting strategy, according to a letter obtained by Reuters.

* LOGITECH: The manufacturer of keyboards, webcams, and other computer accessories is letting off around 300 staff as part of a global reorganisation, according to Bloomberg News on March 22.

* NOKIA: On May 3, the Finnish telecom equipment maker announced plans to slash up to 208 positions in Finland.

* PHILIPS: On January 30, the Dutch medical equipment producer announced 6,000 job cuts in response to decreasing sales and a huge recall of its respiratory machines.

* SAP: On January 26, the German software company announced plans to slash 3,000 employees, or 2.5% of its global staff, in order to cut expenses and focus on its cloud business.

* TELECOM ITALIA: According to Reuters, the business is looking to slash up to 2,000 positions in Italy through a voluntary early retirement scheme.

* VODAFONE: On March 13, the British telecoms giant announced plans to cut 1,000 jobs in Italy, accounting for about a fifth of its overall employment in the nation. Vodafone’s regional leader informed the German daily Handelsblatt on March 29 that the company plans to reduce roughly 1,300 full-time jobs in Germany.

OTHER

* BASF: The German chemicals company announced on February 24 that it would reduce 2,600 jobs to boost competitiveness, as it warned of future earnings declines owing to rising costs.

* DEUTSCHE BANK: Germany’s largest bank announced on April 27 that it would lay off 800 employees in order to save an additional 500 million euros over the following few years.

* EVONIK: The German speciality chemicals maker said on 3 April that it would lay off 200 workers as part of a restructuring of its pet food division.

* GRIFOLS: The Spanish pharmaceutical giant announced on Feb. 15 that it would let off roughly 2,300 employees, or 8.5% of its global staff, as part of a strategic revision aimed at saving around 400 million euros per year. TAYLOR WIMPEY: The British housebuilder stated on Jan. 13 that it was considering job cutbacks to keep costs under control, but did not specify how many.

(Adapted from Reuters.com)

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