The German electronics and electrical engineering multinational, Siemens, has announced job cuts totalling 16,750.

The German electronics and electrical engineering multinational, Siemens, has announced job cuts totalling 16,750.

Siemens has announced that it is to cut 16,750 jobs – 12,600 worldwide and 4,150 through restructuring projects – in an effort to counteract the “impending global economic downturn”.

The German electronics and electrical engineering multinational announced in November 2007 its intention to reduce sales and general administrative costs to a “competitive level” and has stated that it aims to reduce costs in absolute terms by €1.2 billion (£950 million) by 2010.

Peter Loscher, Siemens President and Chief Executive Officer, explained the reason for the job cuts: “The speed at which business is changing worldwide has increased considerably, and we’re orienting Siemens accordingly. Against the backdrop of a slowing economy, we have to become more efficient.”

As well as job cuts within its administration-related functions, Siemens has already begun to restructure its offices. Its previous eight groups have been reformed to create three new sectors, and the administrative tasks of around 70 regional companies have been redistributed to just 20 regional clusters.

The company has insisted that the cuts will be made in a way that is “socially responsible”. “We intend to consider the full range of instruments at our disposal – for example, transfer companies and part-time pre-retirement schemes. Only as a last resort will we terminate employment contracts for operational reasons,” explained Siegfried Russwurm, Siemens’ Chief Personnel Officer.