Financially challenged Swedish telecoms firm Ericsson continued to shrink its presence in Norway this week, laying off another 120 workers in a move that will leave its local workforce a mere shadow of its former self.
Ericsson announced it was shutting down its research and development division in Norway, so the jobs held by staff in Asker west of Oslo would be transferred to China, Sweden, Italy and Hungary.
Ericsson had around 1,300 employees in Norway in 2000. It will soon be down to just 80, working only with sales and marketing.
“It’s a tough message we had to give our employees,” said Aksel Aanensen, head of Ericsson Norge. The “hard facts,” he said, are that the company must constantly boost efficiency and cut costs, and that means fewer research and development sites on a global basis.
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