HKScan will reduce its workforce at two poultry plants in Finland as part of an effort to improve profitability.
The company previously announced that it was conducting statutory negotiations for its poultry businesses in May, and following those negotiation announced changes that will be made at the poultry plants in Rauma and Eura.
At HKScan’s plant in Rauma, 55 jobs will be reduced, while there will be other substantial changes in the terms of employment that will affect 105 jobs.
Those changes will be implemented in August and September, with the company aiming to save more than EUR3 million (US$3.12 million) on an annual basis as a result.
The negotiations were aimed aimed at improving the profitability, competitiveness and cost-efficiency of HKScan's Finnish poultry business by improving production efficiency, reorganizing operations and renewing operating methods at the Rauma and Eura units. The statutory negotiations concerned blue-collar employees as well as the white-collar employees in the maintenance organization at the Rauma and Eura units. 600 employees were in the scope of the negotiations.
“We are building a stronger base for the profitability and success of our poultry business. With the measures we are now taking, we will improve the company’s competitiveness in the strategically important and growing category of poultry products. We will determinedly continue to improve the cost-efficiency of our operations and create new ways to meet customer expectations and consumer needs,” Jari Leija, HKScan’s EVP for the Business Unit Finland, said in a press release.
The measures are a continuation of the poultry business productivity and profitability improvement program, which started in 2020.
The Rauma facility is a relatively new one, as it opened in August 2017.
With annual slaughterings of around 93 million birds, HKScan is among the top 40 poultry meat companies in Europe, according to the WATTPoultry.com Top Poultry Companies survey.
