Outokumpu to cut 1000 jobs globally, 270 in Finland

Finnish steel company Outokumpu on Thursday announced its plan to cut about 1,000 employees at its different plants across the world, including 270 in Finland, said the company in a press release.

Outokumpu planned the restructuring measures for cost-savings and employee negotiations due to the challenging market situation with continuing high import pressure in Europe and the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the global economy.

The negotiations will be initiated immediately in accordance to local legislation and other requirements in all the respective countries.

The employee reductions are planned to be 270 in Finland, 250 in Germany, and 190 in Sweden, with further reductions planned across the European and American operations.

Outokumpu targets to have a headcount of below 9,000 during 2022.

The employee negotiation processes in selected operating countries with the plan to create cost-savings by restructuring and reducing total employee headcount by up to 1,000 (10% of the group total), mostly by the end of 2021.

“We have initiated several other cost-saving measures in the company, but in addition to those, the planned restructuring measures are necessary to adjust our cost structure. We acknowledge these measures are hard for the entire organisation and on the individual level and we will do our utmost to ensure a transparent and fair process during this difficult time,” said the company CEO Heikki Malinen.

The planned personnel reductions are expected to generate total annual savings of approximately EUR 70 million, thereof EUR 60 million being direct personnel cost.