Unilever to cut hundreds of jobs at London office

CONSUMER goods behemoth Unilever is to slash 7,500 jobs as new boss Hein Schumacher leads a massive shake-up at the maker of Dove soap, Marmite and Ben & Jerry’s ice cream.

- Daniel O’Boyle

Unilever said the cuts would be “predominantly office-based”. It didn’t offer a geographic breakdown or details on the type of roles involved, but many jobs are likely to go at its global headquarters in Victoria. The FTSE 100 firm has 6,000 staff in the UK and a global workforce of 127,000 people.

The cuts are part of “a comprehensive productivity programme,” to save €800 million (£684 million) over the next three years. The restructure is led by Schumacher, who took charge last year. He set the stage for the cuts when Unilever reported its results last year, repeatedly calling the company’s performance “disappointing”.

Today, the CEO said: “We are very aware of how unsettling this will be for our people around the world and we are set on carrying these changes out with respect and care.”