Nokia plans to cut up to 10,000 jobs worldwide, including almost 100 in the UK, in order to generate funds that can be used for research and development.
The Finnish telecoms equipment giant wants to reduce its global workforce from 90,000 to between 80,000 and 85,000 over an 18 to 24-month period. Some 96 jobs are expected to be lost in the UK, as well as around 300 in Finland.
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“Decisions that may have a potential impact on our employees are never taken lightly. Ensuring we have the right setup and capabilities is a necessary step to deliver sustainable long-term performance. My priority is to ensure that everyone impacted is supported through this process,” said Nokia president and CEO Pekka Lundmark.
Lundmark said it would be investing in getting the “right skills and capabilities” in place to aim for “technology leadership”.
The company said the changes were subject to local consultation requirements with employee representatives and its social partners. The exact number of job losses in the countries it operates will depend on “market developments”.
Nokia wants to reduce its costs by €600 million by the end of 2023. These savings will be used to offset increased investment in research and development, future capabilities such as 5G and cloud infrastructure, and salary inflation.
Since 2019 the firm has shed around 11,000 jobs, with the steepest decline seen in China.
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