Pfizer announced on Dec. 12 that the firm would slash 700 jobs in France through layoffs or voluntary departures. But unions at Pfizer's French subsidiary said the company would in reality reduce its workforce by 892 jobs, from 1,771 employees to 879.
Gerard Bouquet, vice president of Pfizer France, said that "700 people will have to leave the company. "This new organization will take effect from December 1, 2009," he said, adding that "there will be no forced layoffs before" that date.
Pfizer France said that the re-organization would affect its Paris headquarters and especially its sales force.
The firm said the workforce reduction was due to growing pressure on healthcare costs, the rising cost of developing drugs and weaker output from its research and development investments due to stringent regulations.
Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2008
