Redundancies hit hard at Fujitsu UK

1,200 Fujitsu UK employees could be set for the dole queue

Fujitsu Services UK, the £2bn-a-year services business unit that deploys and maintains IT and communications infrastructure, has announced plans for 1,200 redundancies.

The figure is just shy of 10 per cent of the firm's 12,500-strong UK workforce. The redundancies are expected to be completed before the end of the year, as part of an ongoing rationalisation programme.

Fujitsu said in a statement that the decision follows several attempts by management to stave off the redundancies, including pay and pension scheme freezes, the elimination of bonuses and "strict controls" applied to operational and capital expenditure.

The company blamed lower-than-expected revenues for the cutbacks, despite having recently reviewed its earnings forecasts upwards rather than downwards.

Company representatives were unavailable for comment by phone or email.

However, Peter Skyte, national officer for IT and communications at trade union Unite, said that there is a "suspicion that the UK is being used as a milk cow to fund other parts of the company", and raised concerns about Fujitsu's ability to maintain the same level of service while cutting "to the bone".

Skyte added that Unite will be looking into the scope of the proposed redundancies, as well as "the reasons for cutting back on such high-skilled labour".

Just last May, Unite was up in arms following a pension scheme freeze at Fujitsu.

The company said that it will meet with employee representatives within 90 days to negotiate the matter further.