Ericsson AB plans to cut around 1,400 jobs in Sweden as the telecommunications-equipment giant grapples with slowing demand for its 5G gear in markets like the U.S.
The cuts are part of an effort the company announced late last year to reduce costs by 9 billion Swedish kronor, equivalent to about $861 million, by the end of 2023 through streamlining processes, closing facilities and using fewer consultants.
Ericsson has now concluded negotiations with Swedish labor unions and plans to make job cuts through a voluntary program, a spokeswoman said Monday. Managers will share how each unit is affected with their employees in the coming days, the spokeswoman added.
The company spokeswoman declined to comment on the potential for additional head count reductions in other countries.
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The job cuts add to a wave of corporate layoffs so far this year, with a string of big companies outlining plans to cut thousands of workers as they adjust to slowing growth or respond to weaker demand for their products.
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Ericsson last month reported lower-than-expected quarterly profit and warned it faced an uncertain start to the new year as telecom operators in markets like the U.S. hold off placing new orders for 5G gear amid economic uncertainty.
The company said at the time that the trend started to hurt its key networks unit in the fourth quarter of 2022 and that it expects it to continue during the first half of this year. It said operators in North America had reduced capital expenditure and were expected to continue to sweat assets in response to macroeconomic headwinds.
