AB Inbev

167 jobs
Number of planned job losses

Announcement Date

9 June 2011

Employment effect (start)

Foreseen end date

Description

The Belgian-Brazilian brewing group AB Inbev has reached an agreement with the unions and it is to cut some 167 jobs through voluntary measures (including early retirement and voluntary departures). Additionally, there will be no difference in departure conditions between blue-collar and white-collar workers who will leave the company voluntarily; the notice period for white-collars will apply to all redundant workers. Finally according to the agreement there will be no further job cuts over the next three years.

In early 2010, the brewing group announced an internal restructuring resulting in the loss of 304 jobs at the sites in Leuven (190 jobs), Jupille (63 jobs) and across other sites in Wallonia (16 jobs), Flanders (24) and Brussels (13). While the management blamed the job loss on the decrease in beer consumption in Belgium (-20% between 2000 and 2008), the unions questioned the restructuring and said that the decision was unexpected as "the group goes well. Profits are good and market shares are growing in Belgium".

However, in February 2010, the management decided to cancel the proposed restructuring after having accepted the union argument that the plan to make 300 people redundant was not justified on economic grounds, with an agreement reached to renegotiate employment terms instead.

In 2006, the company had already relocated a series of support services (including exports, sales, finance) to the Czech Republic and Hungary. For additional details of this restructuring, see the European Industrial Relations Observatory.

Sources

• 7 January 2010: De Standaard
• 8 January 2010: Le Soir
• 9 June 2011: L'Echo