Why dismantling at Bayer is so massive «kleinzeitung.at



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By the end of 2021, German pharmaceutical and agrochemical group Bayer wants to reduce its global workforce by about 12,000 jobs – most in Germany.

19:41, November 29, 2018

Bayer expects job cuts
Bayer expects job cuts ©

German pharmaceutical and agrochemical group Bayer wants to cut more than one in ten jobs worldwide. In total, about 12,000 of the 118,200 jobs will be phased out by the end of 2021. "An important part" will take place in Germany, the company said Thursday.

However, the company did not provide exact figures for its country of origin or other countries in the world. The effects therefore remained open for the approximately 230 employees of Bayer in Vienna. "We want to define the details for the job cuts in the coming months," the company said.

However, job cuts should be socially acceptable, as the group emphasized. Bayer has agreed with the company committee in Germany a program for the future, which essentially excludes layoffs in the workforce of Bayer AG in Germany until the end of 2025. At the same time, Bayer announced value adjustments totaling € 3.3 billion. Most importantly, they concern the declining business of over-the-counter drugs and the pharmaceutical sector.

The Bayer Group, founded in 1863, is one of the most traditional German companies with an annual business turnover of about 35 billion euros in 2017. According to its own data, nearly 118,200 people work for the group worldwide, including 230 in Austria. For a long time, Bayer has brought together under its auspices the fields of chemistry, health and crop protection.

With the $ 63 billion acquisition of US seed giant Monsanto this year, Bayer is becoming the world's number one agricultural chemical market.

Within the Group, the integration of Monsanto has modified its previous balance: agricultural activity and seeds are growing about the size of the pharmaceutical business and should represent about half of its sales in the future.

During the 2017 fiscal year, the Bayer Group achieved a net profit of about 7.3 billion euros – after 4.5 billion the previous year. After the planned removal of 12,000 jobs, the company still has 100,000 employees.

The mbadive downsizing is part of a program to increase efficiency, with which the Group wishes to significantly increase its strength of innovation and competitiveness. The group is currently fighting on several fronts. Following the acquisition of Monsanto, Bayer faces numerous lawsuits in the United States regarding glyphosate herbicide.

The plaintiffs accuse Monsanto's American company, acquired by Bayer, of selling a carcinogen containing glyphosate and of not being sufficiently informed of the harmfulness. Bayer resolutely rejects these allegations. But Bayer's action has collapsed after the first glyphosate loss process.

Prepare for the future

Werner Baumann, CEO of Bayer, said the planned cuts were not a reaction to Monsanto's takeover, let alone lawsuits against glyphosate in the US: "With these adjustments, we will be even more powerful and agile in the future, "he said. The group is thus "the best positioned for the future".

Nonprescription drug activity is currently running much worse than expected for Bayer. And in the important pharmaceutical sector, the group had recently announced few promising new developments. All these problems that the group now wants to address with the new package of measures.

The group is ready for deep cuts. This is how the animal health sector should be sold. Although this offers great growth opportunities, Bayer nevertheless wants to focus its investments on the core business of pharmaceuticals, over-the-counter medicines and crop protection. The 60% share of the German chemical site services provider will also focus on the core business of pharmaceuticals, over-the-counter medicines and crop protection.

Sale of sunscreen

The 60% stake in the German chemical site service provider, Currenta, should also be sold. In the field of over-the-counter medicines, Bayer is considering acquiring sunscreen products bearing the Coppertone and Pedicure brands under the brand name Dr. Ing. Acquired a few years ago by its American competitor Merck & Co. Scholl is separated.

The important pharmaceutical sector must be realigned in order to strengthen its strength of innovation. The Leverkusen-based company aims to reduce its internal research capabilities by increasing its investments in joint projects with partners and in external innovations. About 900 jobs in pharmaceutical research must therefore be eliminated.

Degradation in crop protection

Most of the announced job cuts will be in plant health division and administration. Approximately 4,100 jobs will be eliminated as part of the Monsanto acquisition, 5,500 to 6,000 jobs in the group and divisional positions, and 1,100 in the reorganization of over-the-counter drugs. In addition to the synergies expected from the Monsanto acquisition, the package of measures is expected to release funds worth 2.6 billion euros per year from 2022.

Bayer Austria GmbH, based in Vienna-Ottakring, employs around 230 people, according to the journal Compbad. Last year, a turnover of 205 million euros was realized. The ordinary business result (EGT) in 2017 was about 10 million euros. According to the company's home page, employees in Austria are responsible for marketing, sales, technical and medical advice for Bayer products, as well as clinical studies. Since 2009, the control of the group of countries of South-East Europe has been carried out from Vienna. In addition to Austria, this includes Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia and Slovenia.


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