Rolls-Royce Aero to cut "at least" 9,000 jobs in post-lockdown restructure

A British aviation company has announced that it will be cutting “at least” 9,000 jobs worldwide.

Rolls-Royce, which manufactures aero-engines, said today that it is proposing a “major reorganisation”, which will see 9,000 of its 52,000 jobs cut worldwide - 17 per cent of its workforce.

It will also cut expenditure across plant and property, capital and other indirect cost areas.

The company said that the proposed reorganisation is expected to generate annualised savings of more than £1.3bn, with reduction in roles contributing £700m.

Warren East, CEO of Rolls-Royce Aero, commented: “This is not a crisis of our making. But it is the crisis that we face and we must deal with it.

“Our airline customers and airframe partners are having to adapt and so must we.

“Being told that there is no longer a job for you is a terrible prospect and it is especially hard when all of us take so much pride in working for Rolls-Royce. But we must take difficult decisions to see our business through these unprecedented times.

“Governments across the world are doing what they can to assist businesses in the short-term, but we must respond to market conditions for the medium-term until the world of aviation is flying again at scale, and governments cannot replace sustainable customer demand that is simply not there.

“We have to do this right, which means we will work closely with our employee and trade union representatives as appropriate, look at any viable alternatives to mitigate the impact, consult with everyone affected and treat our people with dignity and respect.

“The strategic choices that we have made over the last few years have helped us to respond rapidly to COVID-19 and the synergies between our divisions leave us well placed to capitalise on the long-term potential of our markets.

“The world on the other side of this pandemic will need the power that we generate to fuel economic recovery.

“I absolutely believe the call for that power to be more sustainable will be stronger than ever. This plays to our strengths.

“We must ensure that we are able to continue to innovate and play our leading role in enabling the vital sectors in which we operate achieve net zero carbon emissions.

“We have emerged from troubled times before, to achieve incredible things. We will do so again.”