EDS is to cut 3,378 jobs in the UK – one in five of its workforce – following a £7bn takeover by Hewlett Packard (HP) – a move condemned by its strongest union.
Last month HP, the world’s largest computer company, said it would axe 24,600 jobs globally as part of a shake-up of its business.
EDS has major contracts with government departments, including the Department for Work and Pensions and Ministry of Defence.
The Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) – which represents more than 2,000 EDS staff – warned that the delivery of public services could be affected by the job cuts. It also said it would “vigorously oppose” any moves to impose compulsory redundancies.
PCS national officer for EDS, Jim Hanson, said, “Our worst fears have been confirmed. We feared 3,000 job losses for the UK, and the figure is even higher. For the past 18 months we have already seen job cuts in EDS, with a voluntary redundancy exercise already in progress.
“It is disappointing that these figures have been made public before we have discussed how they have been arrived at.”
HP said it would try to redeploy individuals affected by the cuts elsewhere in the business.
