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Richemont Prepares Contingency Job Cut Plan, Union Leader Says
By Thomas Mulier
Feb. 20 (Bloomberg) -- Cie. Financiere Richemont SA, the owner of the Cartier and Jaeger-LeCoultre brands, has prepared a contingency plan for cutting jobs should Swiss watch exports worsen, according to Switzerland’s largest union.
Jean-Claude Rennwald, who heads the watchmaking unit of the Unia union, said he met yesterday with Dominique Clement, a human resources official at Richemont, to discuss what measures the company would take if it needed to reduce staff. Alan Grieve, a spokesman for the Swiss company, wasn’t immediately available and didn’t return a phone call seeking comment.
“If this continues, there could be hundreds of job losses,” Rennwald said today in a telephone interview, referring to the Swiss watch industry in general.
Swiss watch exports dropped 22 percent in January from a year earlier, the biggest monthly decline since records began 20 years ago, a report showed yesterday. Luxury good retailers are cutting orders as they seek to reduce their inventories in the recession. Shipments to the U.S. were down 29 percent, and to China and Russia 43 percent and 50 percent, respectively.
Richemont doesn’t intend to implement any measures yet, Rennwald said, adding that the tone of the discussions was “positive.” He declined to give details of the plan.
Richemont, whose 12 watch brands include 254-year-old Vacheron Constantin, IWC and Roger Dubuis, has already put some Cartier watch employees on part-time working schedules. The luxury goods maker said last month that market conditions are the toughest in its 20 years of existence.
Switzerland’s watch industry employs about 48,000 people at more than 600 companies. Watches make up almost a tenth of the total of the country’s exports. Movado Group Inc., the maker of Ebel watches, became the first watch company to announce job cuts in December, eliminating as many as 60 jobs in Switzerland.
Swatch Group AG, the world’s largest watchmaker and owner of the Omega and Breguet brands, has said sales will probably decline in the first three or four months this year.
Last Updated: February 20, 2009 06:00 EST
By Thomas Mulier
Feb. 20 (Bloomberg) -- Cie. Financiere Richemont SA, the owner of the Cartier and Jaeger-LeCoultre brands, has prepared a contingency plan for cutting jobs should Swiss watch exports worsen, according to Switzerland’s largest union.
Jean-Claude Rennwald, who heads the watchmaking unit of the Unia union, said he met yesterday with Dominique Clement, a human resources official at Richemont, to discuss what measures the company would take if it needed to reduce staff. Alan Grieve, a spokesman for the Swiss company, wasn’t immediately available and didn’t return a phone call seeking comment.
“If this continues, there could be hundreds of job losses,” Rennwald said today in a telephone interview, referring to the Swiss watch industry in general.
Swiss watch exports dropped 22 percent in January from a year earlier, the biggest monthly decline since records began 20 years ago, a report showed yesterday. Luxury good retailers are cutting orders as they seek to reduce their inventories in the recession. Shipments to the U.S. were down 29 percent, and to China and Russia 43 percent and 50 percent, respectively.
Richemont doesn’t intend to implement any measures yet, Rennwald said, adding that the tone of the discussions was “positive.” He declined to give details of the plan.
Richemont, whose 12 watch brands include 254-year-old Vacheron Constantin, IWC and Roger Dubuis, has already put some Cartier watch employees on part-time working schedules. The luxury goods maker said last month that market conditions are the toughest in its 20 years of existence.
Switzerland’s watch industry employs about 48,000 people at more than 600 companies. Watches make up almost a tenth of the total of the country’s exports. Movado Group Inc., the maker of Ebel watches, became the first watch company to announce job cuts in December, eliminating as many as 60 jobs in Switzerland.
Swatch Group AG, the world’s largest watchmaker and owner of the Omega and Breguet brands, has said sales will probably decline in the first three or four months this year.
Last Updated: February 20, 2009 06:00 EST
me not even sitting near to the top of the payroll!!
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