AstraZeneca to cut staff in India
NEW DELHI: On September, 23 at 7:53 PM, the human resource department of AstraZeneca Pharma India sent a letter to around 50 employees, inviting them to Bangalore to participate in a discussion regarding restructuring of the firm’s business.
The letter said the UK-headquarter pharma major has globally launched the “Focus to Win” initiative to align its resources with strategic objectives.
The mail had attached flight tickets and hotel booking receipts at Clarks Exotica Resort and Spa. Most of the invited employees were in the sales department.
The invite seemed like a bigger professional opportunity, but on September 29, during the cpurse of the discussion things turned upside down when employees were asked to resign. Two of them resigned, but others resisted. “By the end of the day, the rest of them were sent resignation letters,” said Partha Rakshit, treasurer, Federation of Medical and Sales Representatives Association of India (FMSRAI), who was present at the venue.
“How can the company I have been working for the past five years ask me to go away without any notice,” said an employee, who was sent his termination letter by email, after being given one-and-half months of salary.
A source still employed with the company confirmed that AstraZeneca has already fired 60 people in the past four months, and another 50-52 pink slips will be given out soon.
This news comes after AstraZeneca sold its antibiotics business to Pfizer in August. About 134 employees in the antibiotic division could also be laid off.
The lay-offs will bring down the firm’s total headcount of 1,200 in India by one-fourth.
“In line with the global strategy, AstraZeneca is consolidating its investments in India… We have implemented a number of initiatives which include prioritising investment, reducing discretionary spends, accelerating business capabilities and manpower rationalisation,” the company said in an email.