Sony Announces Job Cuts, Plant Closure
Sony (NYS: SNE) today announced more details of its plans to slash 10,000 jobs by the end of March.The job cuts announced today total about 2,000, including a 20% reduction of its workforce at its Japanese headquarters.
One location, in Minokamo, where 840 employees manufacture interchangeable lenses for digital SLR cameras, lens blocks, and mobile phones, will be shut altogether. The company will use early retirement programs to "assist employees to secure new opportunities outside the Company," according to its press release.
Sony announced in April that it was planning on cutting 10,000 jobs from its global workforce in FY12, mostly in the electronics business, as it tries to streamline operations and increase efficiency. Sony's announcement today emphasized that it will now be focusing increasingly on smartphone production.
As a part of its efforts to focus operations, Sony sold its chemical products business in September. The full FY 2012 restructuring efforts are expected to cut annual fixed costs by 30 billion yen -- or about $378 million -- for FY14 and onward. Sony lost more than 450 billion yen ) in its last fiscal year, which was its fourth consecutive year of losses.
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