500 Jobs at Lenzing in Danger - First Job Cuts This Year?
At the publicly listed fiber manufacturer Lenzing, 500 jobs could be at risk - 200 positions are expected to be cut this year according to the "Oberösterreichische Nachrichten" (OÖN) and "Krone". The two newspapers base their reports on information from the employee works council Stephan Gruber. A Lenzing spokesperson neither confirmed nor denied the reports to the APA.
500 Jobs at Risk at Lenzing
The majority of the affected employees are likely to be administrative staff. According to "Krone", they make up 70 percent of the 200 positions to be cut by the end of the year; 30 percent are workers. In the following two years, according to the alleged plans, 300 "administrative activities are to be outsourced to cheaper countries, such as the Czech Republic and India," the newspaper quotes Gruber.
Lenzing referred in a statement to the previous implementation of their so-called "Performance Program" since 2023. "Nevertheless, we see that further significant measures are needed to respond to the lack of market recovery and the intense competition in Asia. We are currently conducting intensive discussions within the group with the aim of primarily optimizing the cost structure of the Lenzing Group."
Works Meeting on Monday Could Bring More Clarity
A bit more clarity could be provided according to the newspapers on Monday, when a works meeting and a supervisory board meeting are to take place in Lenzing, Upper Austria. According to OÖN, employee representatives want to "achieve something more" with a resolution here.
Already at a press conference in early August for the presentation of the half-year figures for 2025, Lenzing CEO Rohit Aggarwal did not rule out a reduction in personnel in Austria when asked. The Lenzing Group had increased its revenue in the first half of the year by 2.3 percent to 1.34 billion euros compared to the first half of 2024. The operating result (EBITDA) rose by 63.3 percent to 268.6 million euros. The positive result was also attributed to the savings program set up in 2023.
The company has had turbulent years. In the 2023 financial year, Lenzing recorded a net loss of almost 600 million euros. There were also losses in the previous year. Added to this was the FFP2 mask scandal involving the mask manufacturer Hygiene Austria - a joint venture between Lenzing and the lingerie manufacturer Palmers. Hygiene Austria filed for bankruptcy in early 2024.
FPÖ Sees "Declaration of Bankruptcy" of Government Policy
The media reports about further personnel reductions also prompted a political response on Friday. FPÖ economic spokesperson Barbara Kolm spoke in a statement of a "black day for the economic location of Upper Austria" and identified a "further declaration of bankruptcy of the black-red-pink government policy" in it.
(APA/Red)
This article has been automatically translated, read the original article here.