Gallaher set to axe jobs
Silk Cut-to-Hamlet group Gallaher today announced plans to restructure its factories in the UK and the North as part of an overhaul that could affect 250 jobs in Europe.
The company said it was likely 80 positions would go in the two factories, where Gallaher employs 1,080 people at Lisnafillan near Ballymena and Cardiff.
As well as those changes, Gallaher said it planned to close the Schwaz cigarette and Frstenfeld cigar factories in Austria during 2005. It means that Cardiff will become the company’s only cigar-making site.
Gallaher did not specify details of the proposed UK restructuring, although it said it was committed to its remaining facilities in Austria and the UK.
It is the second time since 2003 that the company has announced a restructuring drive, following moves to end manufacturing in the Republic of Ireland and cut its headcount in the UK and Austria.
The company said today it would maintain the same production capacity through the changes, but that it needed to take action to become more competitive.
And in seeking to grow its Eastern European and developing markets business, Gallaher said it would look to enhance its factory in Poland and commence production in Romania in order to meet demand there.
The group employs more than 10,000 people with other plants situated in Russia, Kazakhstan, Sweden and Ukraine. The site at Lisnafillan employs around 850 people and makes all of Gallaher’s UK cigarette and tobacco products, including Benson & Hedges and Silk Cut.
Gallaher said it would hold a full consultation with staff before confirming details of the restructuring and the financial benefits it will bring.
In September, Gallaher announced first half pre-tax profits of £250m (€357m), a rise of 4.4% despite the impact of higher taxes on cigarettes in Germany, where the cigarette market declined 13.5%, and the Republic of Ireland.
