The management and trade unions at Agfa-Gevaert in Mortsel (Antwerp Province) have reached an agreement on a restructuring plan that will see staff numbers reduced by 470 in the short term and 530 by 2027. Around 1,800 people currently work at Agfa’s Mortsel site.
Agreement on restructuring plan for Agfa-Gevaert’s factory in Mortsel, near Antwerp
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The reorganisation at Agfa-Gevaert had long been expected. Job cuts were already announced last summer. The image processing company's sales and turnover figures have been poor for some time now. However, when Agfa announced its restructuring plan in November the impact on employment at the Mortsel factory was far greater than the unions had expected.
Now management and the unions at the factory have reached an agreement that will “bring the cost base into line with the market reality”, Agfa said in a press release. The company will thoroughly reorganise all aspects of its film-related activities “with the aim of realising savings of 50 million euro by the end of 2027.”
470 staff, including blue- and white-collar workers and executives, are impacted by the restructuring. Forced redundancies are to be largely avoided, as Agfa is counting on natural wastage (for example though retirement) and staff opting for voluntary redundancy. Levels of severance pay that will be given to those that take voluntary redundancy have not been disclosed.