Electronics firm axes 30 jobs
Radio technology firm Tait Communications is getting rid of 30 jobs and says it will reinvest the money saved into research and development.
The Christchurch-based company, which offers radio communications for emergency services like fire and police, told staff of its proposed restructure on Tuesday.
Tait Communications’ spokesman Bryn Somerville said staff may have been taken by surprise at the meeting, where several other new changes including moving from voice-only communication to systems that gathered greater data and geolocation were announced.
‘‘We’re moving to a new area that is just more than voice but it’s heavy on R&D and we’re reallocating resources to make sure the future of the business we’ll be there,’’ Somerville said.
‘‘We go through this quite often. These things happen pretty regularly, this one has been maybe of more interest because of changes across the entire business.’’
While Somerville would not confirm which departments were affected he said senior management and executive positions would be part of the cull.
Jobs in Christchurch, the company’s headquarters, and in other countries would go under the restructure.
The 50 year old radio technology company was founded by Sir Angus Tait.
In August last year it was revealed that Tokyo Stock Exchange-listed JVC Kenwood had bought a 40 per cent stake in Tait International Limited.
Last year Tait also won a $30 million contract with Transport for London to replace the British capital city’s bus radio communications system with a new digital mobile radio system.
In 2017 Tait raised $57 million through the sale of its headquarters in Christchurch.
With the 30 proposed job losses, Somerville said about a dozen new roles would be created in a ‘‘the next little while’’. ‘‘It’s the way we do business. Our R&D needs to continue to grow and evolve and the way we go to market also needs to evolve.’’