MNC layoffs: Philips to recall devices to treat sleep apnea sufferers in 2021
Hega:
Troubled Dutch medical tech maker Philips said on Monday it would eliminate 6,000 more jobs worldwide after fresh losses due to a massive recall of faulty sleep respirators.
Chief executive Roy Jacobs announced “difficult, but further reductions in our workforce” until 2025, which comes just three months after announcing 4,000 cuts.
The Amsterdam-based firm disclosed a net loss of 105 million euros ($114 million) for the fourth quarter of 2022 and a loss of 1.605 billion euros for the previous year, largely due to the recall.
Philips announced a global recall of its devices to treat people with sleep apnea in 2021 and is now facing multiple lawsuits in the United States.
This was followed by concerns that patients risk “potential toxic and carcinogenic effects” if they inhale or swallow pieces of the bad sound-dampening foam on the machines.
Jacobs, who took over in October, said Philips needed to “improve performance and simplify the way we work to improve our agility and productivity.”
“This includes the difficult, but necessary reduction of our workforce by around 6,000 roles globally by 2025,” he added.
A total of 3,000 new jobs will be cut in 2023.
Jacobs said Philips will also focus on “strengthening our patient safety and quality management and completing the Respironics recall.”
Beginning more than 130 years ago as a lighting company, Philips has undergone major transformation in recent years, selling off assets to focus on making high-end electronic healthcare products.
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and was auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)