(Bloomberg) -- Ericsson AB, which signaled last month that production lines in Sweden weren't exempt from planned job cuts, could deliver the news to employees at factories in Boraas and Kumla as soon as Tuesday, according to broadcaster SVT.
The struggling maker of wireless-networking equipment may say Tuesday it's eliminating 3,000 to 4,000 positions in its home country as part of cost-cutting measures, state broadcaster SVT reported, citing unidentified people with knowledge of the plans. In Boraas, the entire factory may be closed down, costing 800 jobs, it said. Production in Kumla will also be affected, according to the report.
Ericsson has informed the Swedish government about its plans, SVT said. The reductions follow a report in Svenska Dagbladet newspaper last month, which said Ericsson was considering shutting down the last of its network-equipment production operations in Sweden and may cut 3,000 jobs.
The blow to its last remaining Swedish factories would underscore the extent of Ericsson's challenges as it tries to keep up with rising competition and slowing demand. As the slump ate into profit, Ericsson ousted its chief executive officer in July and has targeted cost cuts aimed at saving 9 billion kronor ($1.05 billion) a year by 2017.
Minako Nakatsuma Olofzon, a spokeswoman for Ericsson, declined to comment on SVT's report on Monday, saying only that if the company has any news to announce it will do so through the regular channels. Goesta Brunnander, a spokesman for the Swedish government, also declined to comment.
Ericsson said on Sept. 22, in response to the Svenska Dagbladet article, that its previously communicated cost and efficiency measures “mean a reduction of the number of employees worldwide” and that its Swedish operations are not excluded from such measures.
“We will handle this on a country-by-country basis and our employees and, where applicable, union representatives will always be informed first,” Ericsson said then. “We have large operations in Sweden which are not excluded” from the cost-saving plans, it said.
To contact the reporters on this story: Niklas Magnusson in Stockholm at nmagnusson1@bloomberg.net, Amanda Billner in Stockholm at abillner@bloomberg.net. To contact the editors responsible for this story: Jonas Bergman at jbergman@bloomberg.net, Anthony Palazzo at apalazzo@bloomberg.net, Tasneem Hanfi Brögger
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