Struggling Finnish phone maker Nokia plans to cut 4,000 more jobs at its plants in Finland, Hungary and Mexico as it seeks to cut costs by moving smartphone assembly work to Asia. The cuts of 8 percent of the phone business workforce bring total planned job cuts at the group since Stephen Elop took over as Chief Executive in September 2010 to more than 30,000.
Nokia said in a statement the job cuts would take place in phases through this year. It has been reviewing the operations since unveiling the closure of its Romania plant last September. "This was inevitable. It was a surprise it took so long for the decision to be made," said Steve Brazier, chief executive of technology research firm Canalys. "Stephen Elop may be a polarising figure, but he is proving effective at driving the change and he should be credited for that". Nokia's recent business results have underscored the need for drastic cuts.
Late last month it reported a 73 percent fall in quarterly earnings as sales of new Windows Phones failed to dent the dominance of Apple Inc's iPhone or compensate for diving sales of its own old smartphones. Nokia said it would cut 2,300 jobs in Hungary, where it is a major exporter, some 1,000 in Finland and 700 in Mexico. It will continue to tailor models for specific operators at all sites.