HP Plans to Shed 1,124 UK Employees in 2014

According to a statement by BBC News, HP has unveiled its plan to lay off 1,124 employees in the UK next year as part of its global downsizing of 27,000 jobs by the end of 2014.

HP explains not all the 1,124 employees will leave the firm, as some of them can transfer to other positions within the company. It explains, “HP remains committed to supporting the employability of its employees through a number of internal initiatives, including reskilling, redeployment and support to obtain alternative employment, as appropriate.”

HP’s Unite union claims that managers made the decision to downsize as its core desktop computer business has declined and it has struggled to keep up with consumers’ tastes for laptop and tablet devices. Specifically, more than 600 jobs are to be cut at the Bracknell hub, almost 500 at Warrington and 23 at Sheffield, said Unite, adding that many of the staff might have lost faith in the company. But it stresses, “Unite will be doing everything possible to mitigate these job losses, which are a hammer blow to the UK’s IT sector and very distressing for employees in the run-up to Christmas.”