Swiss drugmaker Novartis said today that it plans to cut 2,500 global jobs in a restructuring programme aimed at generating yearly cost savings of $1.6 billion.
Novartis currently employs more than 600 people in its manufacturing facility in Ringaskiddy, Co Cork and its ethical pharmaceutical division based in Dublin. It also has operations in Waterford.
A spokesperson for the company said it is currently considering the implications for Novartis in Ireland and the UK.
'Novartis has a wide range of businesses operating in the UK and Ireland, which include research and development, commercial functions and manufacturing,' a statement from the company said.
'Like any international company, Novartis continuously reviews its operational capacity and business models to remain competitive in the UK and international marketplace,' it added.
Novartis said that many of the worldwide cuts, which will take place in 2008 and 2009, will be achieved through normal fluctuation in staffing levels and social programmes, a statement said.
The Basel-based firm, one of the world's biggest drugmakers in both patent-protected and generic medicines, currently employs around 100,000 people.
Novartis said it will book a pre-tax restructuring charge for the cuts of around £450m in the fourth quarter.
