Ericsson swings axe, 400 jobs to go

Swedish equipment vendor Ericsson said Monday that its reorganization project is running according to plan and the new organization will be up and running as of January 1.

However, the company said it “has identified certain excess headcount as a consequence of the new organization.”

Although Ericsson has said it will reduce headcount by an offer of voluntary resignation to the affected employees, local press reports suggest that the firm is looking to shed 400 jobs.

Those who take voluntary resignation will be able to apply for severance payment or permanent employment with Manpower as a consultant, Ericsson said. The company has formed an agreement with Manpower to facilitate redundancies.

Ericsson’s restructuring is designed to target new developments in mobile and fixed broadband and the shift towards next generation networks. Ericsson is implementing a more customer-oriented organization with three business units – Networks, Global Services and Multimedia.

Carl-Henric Svanberg will remain as chief executive officer and president, Karl-Henrik Sundstrom will be executive vice president and chief financial officer, while Kurt Jofs will be executive vice president and general manager of Networks, Hans Vestberg will be executive vice president and general manager of Global Services and Jan Wareby will be senior vice president and head of Multimedia.