Unilever to cut 315 jobs in UK

Consumer goods giant Unilever Plc is to cut 315 jobs in Britain over the next 12 months as part of a worldwide cost-cutting programme and warned of more losses as it launches reviews at three plants.

The move is part of the Anglo-Dutch group's global plan, announced last month, to cut 20,000 jobs out of its 180,000 workforce to speed up its recovery while it plans to sell slow-growing businesses such as its North American laundry unit.

The 315 job losses are from three of the group's laundry and food factories and come out of a UK workforce of 8,000. Three more plants employing around 900 face likely job cuts when reviews are completed in April 2008, the group said yesterday.

Around 200 of the job losses come at Unilever's Port Sunlight and Warrington plants in northwest England which produce Persil and Omo laundry products, and the remaining 115 at its Burton plant in central England making Marmite and Bovril.

The three plants under review are Purfleet just east of London, which makes spreads such as Flora, its Leeds factory in northern England producing deodorants such as Sure and Lynx, and its Pot Noddle plant at Crumlin in South Wales.

A Unilever spokesman said there were likely to be job reductions at the plants but it was too early to say how many.

In addition, Unilever said it was in talks with third parties about building a new automated warehousing plant at its ice cream plant in Gloucester, southwest England, to replace two older stores, which may lead to an eventual transfer of jobs.