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Lights dim at Osram

November 30, 2012

German producer of lighting products, Osram, has said more massive layoffs are unavoidable to bring the ailing company back on track. The Siemens subsidiary has suffered from a shift to LED technology.

https://p.dw.com/p/16tUz
Close-up of Osram light bulb Photo: Klaus-Dietmar Gabbert dpa +++(c) dpa - Report+++
Image: picture-alliance/dpa

Lighting product maker Osram of Germany on Friday said 4,700 more jobs would have to go globally in addition to cuts already announced earlier.

Following a meeting of the advisory board in Munich, the company's management announced 4,300 more people would have to be laid off abroad, with 400 jobs to be cut at the German facilities of Berlin, Munich and Wipperfürth.

The overall number of axed jobs would thus total 5,400 by the end of 2014, the company said, adding that the move was necessary owing to a large-scale shift in technology in the European lighting market and beyond.

Cushioning the blow

Osram said the rapid change from conventional to LED (light-emitting diode) lighting products was causing the company a headache, saying it would try and sell off many of its unprofitable facilities abroad.

Until 2015, the firm aims to save up to 1.0 billion euros ($1.3 billion), money it could then invest in more modern technologies.

"We'll be focusing on restructuring in a resolute way with a view to fully entering the digital era," Osram Chief Executive Wolfgang Dehen said in a statement. He said the company would start talks with workers' representatives on how to make the cuts in a socially responsible way.

hg/msh (dapd, dpa, AFP)