According to press reports in Germany, Siemens is planning to axe 17,200 jobs worldwide, 6,400 jobs alone in Germany. The corporation's new chairman Peter Löscher wants to thin out the middle and higher management, hundreds of jobs are going to be lost in Munich and Berlin.

The cuts are going to be made over the course of the next two years and are supposed to save the company 1.2 billion Euros administrative expenses and distribution costs. Löscher however stated in a letter sent around the company that Siemens will try to avoid social hardships and, if possible, will not directly fire staff. The majority of the jobs will presumably be cut by simply retiring staff without reoccupying the positions. Löscher added that all people working for Siemens would have to be prepared for the toughest restructuring of the company in the last 20 years.

The transportation unit mobility will see 10% of its staff count downsized, which would be around 2000 jobs. Several business units might be abandoned altogether. Trade union IG Metall was peeved to read about the cuts in the press first, whilst local politrickians moaned and groaned how bad job cuts are for the Free State of Bavaria, which, according to some, isn't even a proper part of Germany.

Löscher was officially designated chairman of the board on May 20 and is the successor of Klaus Kleinfeld. Kleinfelds contract was not renewed as a consequence of the recent corruption scandals that grabbed the conglomerate by the neck and rattled its teeth. The SEC investigated the company, which set at least 1.5 billion Euros aside as bribes to hand out to corrupt politicians around the world. More at Spiegel, here. X



Link to a press picture of Löscher:

http://w1.siemens.com/press/en/presspicture/2008/corporate_communication/media_summit_2008/soaxx200806-10.htm

and

http://w1.siemens.com/press/pool/de/pressebilder/corporate_communication/media_summit_2008/soaxx200806-10_072dpi.jpg