Airbus Defence and Space enters consultation with employee reps on restructuring

Above: Airbus HQ facilities at Toulouse.
Courtesy Airbus

In a statement Airbus said that while the underlying business perspectives especially in the core business remain solid, these steps became necessary after the division achieved a book-to-bill ratio below 1 for the third year in a row, mainly caused by a flat space market and postponed contracts on the defence side.
 
The plans presented to the employee representatives foresee the reduction of 2,362 positions until end of 2021, thereof 829 in Germany, 357 in UK, 630 in Spain, 404 in France and 142 in other countries. These efforts will be supported by a reinforced profitability programme and further measures to increase long-term competitiveness and safeguard the division’s future positioning.
 
The need for restructuring was first announced in December 2019 and emphasised also during the company’s Annual Press Conference in Toulouse on 13th February. Airbus Defence and Space will provide updates on its plans and continue a constructive dialogue with employee representatives. Further financial implications are under assessment and will be communicated at a later stage.

Airbus has four major engineering and manufacturing facilities in the UK, 14,000 employees at 25 sites, with  more than 4,000 suppliers in the country supporting more than 110,000 jobs its supply chain.