Rexam cuts jobs in France make-up restructure

Simeon Goldstein, packagingnews.co.uk, 14 September 2009

Rexam is to cut 188 jobs in France as it restructures its make-up business to remain competitive in a declining market.

The London-headquartered metal and plastic packaging firm's make-up division recorded a 30% drop in global sales, according to French media. France recorded a reduction of more than 50%.

As a result, it is restructuring two sites, Simandre and Reboul, making 96 and 92 redundancies respectively of a total 614 workforce. Both sites are expected to make an EUR 11m loss in the 2009 financial year.

"This restructuring will maintain competitiveness in the French make-up sector," the firm's management is quoted as saying.

Rexam spokesman Jonathan Thornton said the move formed part of the global restructuring of the plastics packaging business that had been hit by the economic downturn.

"It's a question of positioning the company for when the upturn comes. It is not a pleasant job to have to make redundancies but is necessary for the future of the company," he said.

The Reboul site will now focus on lipsticks, while the Simandre site will work on closures and the restructuring will enable shared innovation of new products.

 

The firm is currently negotiations with unions and workers representatives.